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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24030280">Goodnight, General</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ASOBlueRose/pseuds/ASOBlueRose'>ASOBlueRose</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Clone Wars Fluff [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003) - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Arguing, Art now in Chapter 12, Battle, Blizzards &amp; Snowstorms, CT-7567 | Rex Needs a Hug, Canon-Typical Violence, Cold Weather, Conflict Resolution, Coping, Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, Cute, Developing Relationship, Double Bladed Lightsaber (Star Wars), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fanart, Fives Deserved Better, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Giant Spiders, Huddling For Warmth, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Issues, Kix is a Good Bro, Lightsaber Construction (Star Wars), Love, Marriage Proposal, Mutual Pining, Podfic Welcome, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Romantic Fluff, Sleepy Cuddles, Slow Burn, Snow, The Clone Wars finale left me sad so I wrote this, This has a plot now</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-03 01:53:34</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>50,862</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24030280</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ASOBlueRose/pseuds/ASOBlueRose</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After her heater blows in the midst of a blizzard, the Togruta Jedi General Adorsha Renon-Tir heads over to the 501st Tent to see if there's a spare bed anywhere. Fives volunteers his own, and Adorsha persuades him to share so as to not leave him in the cold. What follows, is a passionate, intense connection neither anticipated, nor can they live without...</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555/Original Character(s), CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Clone Wars Fluff [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1733494</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>96</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The blistering cold winds of Rhen Vhar were relentless against the flaps of Adorsha's tent, the power had been cutting in and out frequently, leaving her freezing beneath what should of been the warm embrace of her bed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her worst fear was realized when she heard a loud crackle, and looked over to see her heater giving one last spark before it died. She whined, wrapping her blankets around herself and shivering as the cold quickly began to creep in. It had been too long of a day, and she needed the rest. She wasn't about to take away somebody else's heater though, nor ask to have it fixed while there was a blizzard going on and it was nightfall, where all the technicians would undoubtedly be asleep. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Reaching over for her boots, she slipped them on along with her coat, grabbing her lightsaber just in case she would need her weapon. This was a horrible idea, but right now, Adorsha was willing to sacrifice a bit of her dignity for some warmth and much needed rest. She flipped the hood up on her coat, and left her tent, making a beeline for the tent barracks. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Slipping inside, she wasn't surprised to find not all of the men asleep quite yet, but those that were seemed to be quite shocked to see her. Among those still awake were Jesse, Dogma, Fives, and Kix, who was giving one last look over of Dogma's bandages on his arm before they all turned in. Dogma was actually the first to stand at attention, with the others who were still awake following suit. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"At ease," she whispered to them all, and approached them quietly so they could speak without waking everyone else.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Something wrong, Ma'am?" Kix asked, knowing she should have been asleep by now too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Can't sleep?" Jesse added.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"My heater broke," Adorsha informed them all "I was… I was wondering if there was a spare bed anywhere?" </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>All of them turned to look, the beds weren't so much beds as they were really just cots with a pillow and a blanket. Until they got the base properly set up, this would be how they would be sleeping. Normally they would have an extra bed or two in the barracks, just in case or transfers, but tonight it appeared they only brought enough to accompany the men they had brought with them planetside. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"... You can have mine, I'll join the night patrol outside," Fives spoke up after a moment of silence. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"No, Fives-"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Or mine, one of us can just sleep in your quarters, be a nice surprise for any assassins," Jesse added with a smirk.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Jesse, I-"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Take mine, I need to take inventory of the medical supplies anyway," Kix interrupted.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"No!" She said a little too loudly, stunning the four of them, shutting down whatever Dogma had to say. Adorsha looked around, and breathed a sigh of relief seeing they hadn't woken anyone up. "N-No, I'm not kicking anyone out of their bed, I… I was going to ask if I could uhm…  perhaps… share? Maybe? With one of you?" She asked, swallowing her pride and plunging them all into silence again as the Clones looked at one another. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"... Share with me, Adorsha," Fives finally broke the silence "My bed is nearest to the heater, if it gets too hot there, Jesse's the next one over," </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Thank you, Fives, I-I promise this will only be for a night," Adorsha nodded to him, starting to undo her coat as she went over to the empty bed by the heater. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She looked back at him as he followed her, trying not to stare as he took off his armor, she folded her coat up and placed it on his trunk, slipping off her boots shortly after. She wasn't as cold in front of the heater with so many people in the room, but the ice nipped at her feet as she stood facing him on the opposite side of the cot. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Y-You get in first, I'll squeeze in whatever room is left," Adorsha instructed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a little awkward to fit both of them in comfortably, and Adorsha had to give up on not having any contact with the ARC Trooper if either of them were going to stand a chance of having a good night's sleep. Eventually she had to settle for resting on his chest, with her legs between his own. She keened when his warm hand wrapped around the top of one of her montrals.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Kriff you're cold," he cursed, and Adorsha bit her tongue as he slid his hand up and down, trying to warm them, meanwhile Adorsha tried to ignore how good his hands felt and found herself biting her lip so that the others didn't hear her. She could feel his heart beating beneath the hard plane of muscle that protected it, and Adorsha had to stop herself from rubbing up against him. Even if the heater wasn’t above them, Fives could have been his own furnace. She mewled softly and hid her face in further embarrassment when his hand switched to warm her other montral. Thankfully, he seemed to take notice, and slowed down his strokes, loosening his grip so his touch was less a tease and more a warm presence on the part of her that was coldest. Meanwhile all Adorsha could do was lean into Fives even more, his touch, his warmth, made her feel like jelly above him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fives looked down to see Adorsha, her eyes starting to close, hearing her purr as exhaustion allowed the warmth to take her. How could he not smile at that adorable sight? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Goodnight, Adorsha," </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Five More Minutes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Adorsha wakes up the next morning and doesn't want to get up just yet...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Wow I didn't expect this to blow up like it did! I'm glad everyone liked my little oneshot enough though, truthfully I was going to leave it like that but due to popular demand, and inspiration striking me in the middle of the night, I decided to add this little bit extra. I hope you enjoy, and shout out to everyone who reviewed/followed, and my silent readers! This is for you!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The cocoon of warmth was both a respite and luxury Adorsha hadn't been able to indulge in since they had landed on the planet cursed with never ending blizzards and ice rain. Her dream had ended a while ago, now she was laying with her eyes closed, hearing the chatter of the Clones outside the tent as their boots crunched around in the snow getting ready to move out from their current position. Adorsha wasn't quite ready to join them yet, not when she had the heater above her warming her face doing a better job than the sun was doing outside, not while she had a warm blanket she just wanted to disappear into, and the heater behind her doing an even better job than the one above her.</p>
<p>Her eyes shot open when she felt something around her trim waist pull her closer, something else nuzzle her, and sigh so close to the sensitive skin of her neck it made her shiver.</p>
<p>"Fives-!" Her little squeak was immediately shushed somewhere in front of her, and Adorsha was able to prop herself up on her elbow to spot Kix glaring at her, and pointing down. She looked around, most of the 501st was still asleep, with the exception being the few brothers Kix had woken up himself to check and change the dressings of his brothers he had tended to the previous day. She swallowed and reluctantly laid down again when Fives pulled her back to him, and the Jedi blushed with a small smile on her face.</p>
<p>She had gone to sleep on top of him, and recalled the familiar presence of what must have been arms around her waist all night. The Jedi weren't supposed to form attachments, they had to stay in control of their emotions, so they could remain balanced with the force. Right now though Adorsha couldn't have suppressed her smile even if she tried. ARC Trooper Fives was a cuddler, and had been cuddling her all night long since they had gone to bed, keeping her warmer than the heater above them and giving her the best night's sleep she'd had in a long time.</p>
<p>Adorsha carefully raised his arm, and moved to lay on her other side facing Fives. He was still asleep, his face perfectly peaceful as he basked in their shared warmth, still dreaming from the way Adorsha noticed his eyes darting around behind his eyelids. Hesitantly, her purple palm smoothed up the hard planes of his chest to his side, settling just below his arm while her free hand slid underneath their shared pillow. Her forehead touched his, and she closed her eyes again, reaching out to see what Fives was dreaming about.</p>
<p>Her vision was a wash of colour unknown to their current icy surroundings. Instead a blue sky formed above her, green grass sprinkled with dashes of purple and yellow wildflowers below her. She heard chatter, laughter, and splashing water as the grass gave way to a lake. Adorsha couldn't figure out where she was exactly, and perhaps this place didn't even exist in the galaxy, as her surroundings became less important than what she saw happening in front of her.</p>
<p>In the water was Fives, Rex, Jesse, Hardcase, Kix, and the others frolicking around. It reminded Adorsha of the days she and the other Padawans at the Temple would jump in the fountains and splash each other to cool off from the unforgiving Coruscant heat after combat training with Master Yoda or those days after Master Windu would put them through their paces. She pulled back with the force, and left Fives to his dream, though physically she didn't move.</p>
<p>The day hadn't begun yet, there hadn't been an attack, and she figured she could afford to relax and sleep a little longer too. Adorsha shut her eyes, and relaxed in their mutual embrace, joining Fives in slumber once more.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Good Morning, General</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Its the next morning, and our cuddly couple wakes up.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Soooo... I kinda dun goofed and forgot to post this chapter when I went to post chapter 4, so here's chapter 3!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sunlight gleaming off of the ice outside the tent that made up the temporary barracks for the 501st shining in his eyes as the tent flap opened and closed repeatedly was what woke up Fives from his slumber. He tilted his head down so he could open his eyes without the risk of being blinded by one of his brothers getting breakfast or taking inventory of their supplies. He expected to see his pillow, not a white stripe dividing purple in his face. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The realization woke him up faster than the light did once Fives realized what, or much rather who, he was looking at. Consequently remembering what had happened last night by extension. A late night game of Sabacc had gone on a little too long when their Jedi General, and honestly one of the few things that made this snowy wasteland bearable, came into their tent shivering asking for an extra bed. They hadn't one to spare for the expedition to re-establish communication with the colony on the planet the Republic had lost contact with, thus he had volunteered his own. He had intended to just stick the night out in her quarters, perhaps just join the others on the nightly patrol and sleep when he had the time after drinking some caf. That plan however, had been scrapped completely when Adorsha, their guiding light throughout the constant snowstorms, had insisted they share. Fives had tried to keep his hands to himself, truly, he had tried, and he would be lying if he said he didn't think their General to be attractive. However his sleep addled mind, or his traitorous subconscious, decided to indulge him. Which was how he had ended up with his arm wrapped around her slender waist, holding her to his chest, sharing the heat between them and basking in the heater's warmth that still hung above them. When she had turned over, or when they had moved into this position in the middle of the night he did not know either, but Fives noticed something that made heat rise to his cheeks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His General, who was holding him just as sweetly as he was holding her, had an adorable smile on her face. Her eyes were still closed, still fast asleep and no doubt dreaming of somewhere better than here, however, Fives could see that little smile as her breath tickled his chest. Adorsha looked serene, the white markings that sectioned her face and chest were too irresistible for Fives not to trace with his finger, starting with the line that ran diagonally across her clavicle and out to her side. He felt where her waist dipped, traced the curve out to her hip and back, wondering just how her skin could be softer than the blanket that was draped over them both. In fact, the longer he gazed at her face, he wondered just what those mauve and indigo lips felt like too, or even tasted…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Pull yourself together Soldier! </span>
  </em>
  <span>He mentally shouted at himself, laying his head back down on the pillow and stiffly fixing his gaze straight. She was a Jedi, his General at that, moreover, those thoughts were both disrespectful towards her and highly inappropriate. Still, he couldn't of been the only one of his brothers who had thought of her like that, not with how she looked, or how she actually treated them like men instead of pawns. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fives heard her moan softly and his eyes shot down to see her stirring from her slumber. Her own hand withdrew from his side to rub her eyes of rheum, yawning softly "Fives…?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Good morning, General," Fives drawled, his hand slipping around to gently rub circles into her back "Sleep well?" </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Adorsha nodded, careful not to accidentally poke him with the tops of her montrals "Mm-hmm, best sleep I've had since leaving the temple, actually," she reported to him, which made Fives both relieved and a little proud too. He'd performed his duty to his General perfectly "What about you? I hope I didn't kick you or anything, this bed is… tiny,"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fives shook his head "No, you didn't kick me while you were asleep, quite the opposite really, you were shivering a little though from the draft so I took the liberty of… warming you up, through shared body heat," they had woken up cuddling each other, for warmth, though cuddling nonetheless. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Warming me up, huh?" Adorsha smiled and shook her head, not believing him, but not calling him out either "Well, hopefully I can get my heater fixed after today's trek, we can't be far from the colony now, once we're there hopefully we won't be needing heaters," </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fives sat up a little, propping himself up on his elbow "If it doesn't get fixed, you are welcome to join me again, the men didn't seem to mind, although I'm not sure if you'll want to be around if Hardcase isn't on night patrol, when he snores he can give a Walker's gun a run for its money," he warned, and Adorsha giggled. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I was bunkmates with a Wookie once during my training as a Padawan, I think I'll be fine with Hardcase," she reassured him, putting her hand on his chest to shimmy herself up the bed to a similar position they had fallen asleep in. A wolf whistle turned both of their heads to see Rex standing just near the foot of the bed, and Adorsha blushed while Fives rolled his eyes at his Captain. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I hate to interrupt, but the cooks are about ready to pack up, if you two want breakfast it's the last call," Rex warned, walking away to go back to his bed. The Jedi and the ARC Trooper exchanged a look, it was about time they got up anyway. Plus, Adorsha knew she had to make a trip back to her tent first to properly get dressed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fives got up and out of the bed to put on and zip up his blacks, while Adorsha buckled her snow boots and coat. They didn't say a word to each other while Fives was putting on his armor or as Adorsha made her way to the door. However, she did stop before she exited the tent "Fives?" She asked, looking over her shoulder, and he rose up from where he had been fastening his gauntlets. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Hm?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Adorsha's smile was brighter than the light that danced in the refraction of the icicles stuck to the outside of the tent, and Fives felt his heart thud harder than the stomping of the AT-RT moving outside "Thank you, for last night, I mean, I appreciate it, really, and I meant what I said, that was the best night's sleep I've had in a long, long time."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Pleasure was mine, General Renon-Tir," Fives answered, mesmerized, and she nodded in turn. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Save me some breakfast if you get there first?" She asked, raising the markings on her face which served as her eyebrows. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fives nodded "</span>
  <em>
    <span>If </span>
  </em>
  <span>I get there first, General, otherwise, save some for me too," </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Of course, Fives, and, again, thank you," With those words, Fives watched Adorsha leave the tent. It took him a moment to get back to his gear, as he wondered if her hips had always swayed from side to side when she walked, or if he had just never noticed it until he had watched her walk away. He picked up his other gauntlet and slid it home onto his fingers, thinking about Adorsha in the cold. She would be alright, there weren't any droids around and he knew she was made of hardier stuff than she appeared to be, still, looking back down at his pillow he remembered how she felt in his arms, her scent of calming lavender and chamomile, that scent haunted his pillow and blanket now and centered him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Although he hoped Adorsha would get her heater repaired, a part of him that he quickly silenced in his mind hoped she did not, if it meant he could spend another night of sweet, serene sleep with her in his arms.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Good Evening, General</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Having finally made it to the Citadel, Adorsha orders everyone to some much needed R&amp;R... but Fives has other ideas.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I did not expect this chapter to be as long, but honestly I found as I kept going that I didn't mind. This fic and everyone reading it I owe a huge thanks to, because this fic has actually made me discover the joy of writing fanfiction again. Seriously, knowing that people are reading my little story that I made on an emotional high and wanted more is one of the most incredible feelings in the world. I'm truly thankful for each and every one of you. I think this is by far the best chapter so far, but I also think the best is yet to come. To everyone who has reviewed, left Kudos, bookmarked, followed, or has just read the fic up to this point, thank you - Rose.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The Citadel of Rhen Var luckily had not been abandoned as the Republic had feared, its citizens had been attempting to contact the Republic for quite some time wishing for reinforcements from the invading Separatist Forces. Their messages however, had been intercepted and jammed from leaving the system, leading to their current situation now. A mission into enemy territory to take out the signal jammer would have been ideal, though upon the urging of the locals, Adorsha had elected to send a reconnaissance squad while the bulk of the forces stayed behind. Nightly raids had the city living in fear, stretching the already taxed guards even further than they already were trying to handle the people living in the Citadel. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One thing that the Citadel had to its advantage and came as quite a welcome surprise to the Republic forces, was the abundance of hot springs that bubbled up naturally in the underground of the city. Adorsha had known the city was powered through thermal energy, though she certainly wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth when she had been marching through the snow, with her heater giving out on her for a final time when she had shut it off that morning. The technicians and engineers had managed to keep it going for the remaining duration of the march after her night with Fives, although they had warned her it would need a new spark port soon or else her time with her heater would run out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now that they were getting settled into the Citadel, she could just get a new one. She doubted that they could find a heater that would feel better than the steamy water of the hot springs did on her tired muscles though. Selfish as it might have been, when she had heard of the hot springs, she had been determined to clear her schedule to finally take a much needed bath. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her gear for the most part was sitting in a pile at the lip of the hot spring she reveled in next to a towel. The local keeper of the springs had given her a two piece bathing suit, much like they had for the bacta tanks in the med bay on the ship, to wear while she enjoyed her peace and quiet. The men knew where she was if they needed her, and she imagined right now they would enjoy being able to enjoy a hot meal inside a warm hall rather than chowing down on rations to sustain themselves while they marched all day, or perhaps even hit a spring like she did before they had to go back out on patrol or attend to their duties. She had upped patrols, but now their numbers were bolstered with the city guard, meaning there were more hands to spare around. When there were more hands, things tended to happen a lot quicker, which meant more rest and relaxation. Consequently, morale would hopefully go up a little too. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A sigh left her violet lips as she tipped her head back, slouching down to submerge her shoulders. She felt something in her neck relax slightly, but still refused to loosen up all the way, souring her expression as she brought her hand up to try and rub out the knot in her muscle. She could feel the sense mass sliding around beneath her fingertips, however it refused to dissipate no matter how hard she pressed. Figuring perhaps she just needed to loosen up a little more she slipped her shoulders beneath the water again, breathing the steam in deeply to clear her sinuses. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The door sliding open caused her to look over her shoulder before she turned entirely, wincing at the ache in her shoulder though quickly regaining her composure. "General," Fives greeted saluting her with a holopad in his hand "The technicians have found a local supplier for your replacement heater, it should be ready for when you retire to your quarters tonight, Ma'am,"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"At ease, Fives," Adorsha told him, and he put his hand down "Thank you for telling me, but I thought Splicer had been tasked to find a new heater?" She asked "Furthermore, I seem to recall ordering Torrent Company to rest after your patrol of the Citadel walls," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He nodded, yet Fives looked straight ahead over her instead of at her directly "You are correct, Ma'am, however I felt it would be best if I used that time to find you a replacement heater so you wouldn't have to share a bed again," he explained, which while Adorsha certainly was grateful for Fives taking the initiative to do that, she hadn't minded sharing either. She still remembered waking up to his warmth, and an arm across her waist to hold her close. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well, thank you Fives, that was very kind of you, but please, you need your rest," Adorsha went to move to the edge of the hot spring when her shoulder screamed in pain, her hand flying up as a hiss escaped her lips. In the blink of an eye the ARC Trooper was at the lip of the pool on one knee.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Are you hurt, General?" He asked her, only now looking at her with eyes full of concern "Should I fetch Kix?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha shook her head "No, it's just a shoulder cramp Fives, probably from where I made that leap up that ice wall today on the hike here, it will go away on its own," still, his gaze didn't waiver, instead his brows sank into a frown as he put the holopad down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I can try and rub it out if you want… I'm no medic, but I know how to get rid of a cramp, if you would let me, of course," Fives suggested, although Adorsha wanted to turn him away to let him have some rest and relaxation of his own, she couldn't ignore the throbbing in her shoulder. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With a sigh, she conceded "Very well," and turned around, moving her Lekku out of the way. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Just- let me take my gauntlets off," Fives told her, unclasping the armor and sliding his gloves off "I'm going to warm my hands up in the water first," the water rippled slightly from where he submerged them besides her "How long have you had it? Just this morning from the climb?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, I think it's from when I had to hold at that awkward angle to pull out the picks in the ice and where I jumped up," Adorsha watched him move his hands up and out of the water. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Could have been from holding onto that cable too for too long without switching sides, now, if this hurts just tell me, I'll stop," Adorsha got the feeling Fives would probably know if he was hurting her, nonetheless, she nodded, and he cautiously placed his hands on her slender striped shoulder "This okay?" He asked, pressing the base of his thumbs at the edge of the knot, rubbing to try and release the tension "Not too rough? Not too cold?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha released a sigh, it hurt though it was the kind of pain she welcomed from the knot being destroyed "No, no that's perfect Fives, keep going," she winced when he pressed down harder. Adorsha heard her neck click as she moved it to one side, meanwhile Fives dipped one of his hands back into the water to warm it up again. "You know," Adorsha cleared her throat "If you didn't have anything else to do, you could join me," she suggested, he needed to rest and if he wasn't going to do that by himself then Adorsha would make sure he did "Water is really nice," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fives chortled, shaking his head "Thanks for the offer, General, but I have a book in the barracks calling my name," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha looked back at him in mild surprise "You read? What kind of stuff do you like? No offense but you didn't strike me as the type Fives," she blinked when he smiled at her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"None taken General, mostly biographies, I like learning about people, about- well, what it's like on the outside I suppose, what's normal for me and my brothers isn't normal for others," Fives ran his hand along her shoulder, trying to feel for any more tension "I guess it helps you to think about putting yourself in somebody else's shoes too, to know what's going through their mind at a particular moment or situation," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You read a lot of-" Adorsha groaned when he found another knot of tension at the base of her neck that he began to tackle "A lot of philosophy and psychology I take it too? I agree, people can be fascinating, in the Jedi Order, empathy is something that's widely encouraged, especially between Master and Apprentice, besides, sometimes fact can be just as strange as fiction, if not more so," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha had to stop herself from shivering when Fives exhaled, his breath tickling the tender skin of her neck and Lekku "Less philosophy and more psychology, we all more or less have our own moral codes, despite the fact my brothers and I are of the same flesh and blood, we are men, not droids, our minds are not the same," he shook his head "I guess that's what sets us apart from the droids, even if some people don't like that," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now that made Adorsha raise a brow, moving her head back a little to look at Fives over her shoulder "What do you mean?" She asked with concern, she had heard of some of the other officials within the Grand Army of the Republic being notorious hard to work with or perfectionists, but there surely couldn't of been mistreatment on purpose… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fives took a deep breath, melancholy creeping into his tone "I've… worked with some people who don't really view us as anything more than our numbers, which-" he paused when Adorsha moved her hands over his, halting the shoulder rub "Which I know that we're trained to answer to, we're supposed to be expendable, kriff Rex has been around long enough to see our numbers even being reused, but I… I don't want it to be that way, I'm not a number, they're not numbers, they're my brothers," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Letting go of his hands, Adorsha rose to stand in the water, Fives joining her on the edge of the pool. When she took his hands again, she pressed her flat palm against his own. His fingers were larger than hers, tanned skin contrasting with lilac and pastel purple palms stripey with white. She heard him take a deep breath, and she opened up her senses to the force to read him. Uncertainty, fear, confusion… comfort? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"They are your brothers," Adorsha repeated in confirmation "You are not a number, you are a man, you have a name, you dream of a future of peace just like the rest of us do," his eyes searched hers, almost ashamed of his own confession and vulnerability. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha smiled. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Join me," she offered again "It's been a long day Fives, you need to rest your body and your mind," </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was silent for a moment before sighing in defeat "You're right," he took a step back, her hands falling back to her sides as his own went to the clasps of his armor to take it off. Adorsha turned to give him some privacy, resisting the urge to look back at him through sheer willpower the force somehow gifted her in that moment. Only when she heard the splash of water behind her did she dare turn around, looking down to see Fives sitting in the water in nothing but his boxers. She sank onto her knees, joining him as another cloud of steam smoked off of the water. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Feels good huh?" She teased, following him backwards to sit with their backs at the edge of the pool's wall. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You have no idea," Fives conceded "How does your shoulder feel now?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha rolled her head from side to side "Much better, thank you Fives," the water was warm, and his massage had worked wonders, but looking at him, she thought back to their night together. She hadn't felt so safe or that warm since before coming to the Jedi Temple as a Youngling, she knew that Jedi weren't supposed to form attachments, for emotions could overwhelm and cloud the mind. Now though, there was only one thing she truly wanted that could have shed the chill in her bones. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fives, if… if it's alright with you, could you… maybe…" she took his hand again and moved it to wrap his arm around her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It took him a moment, but once he realized what she wanted, he cleared his throat and wiped the look of surprise off his face "O-Of course," he put his other arm around her, and she rested her head on his shoulder, sitting upright in the position that they had fallen asleep together in the night before. She could hear the steady thump of his heart that had lulled her to sleep before, and was nearly calling her again now. She reached out with the force again, the fear she had sensed had been completely eradicated, replaced by a warm, pleasantly fuzzy feeling she had felt in him that morning. Outside of this chamber they had their ranks, their duties to attend to once they left. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Here, they were equals, just as they had been when they had woken up in each others arms that morning.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Good to see you're okay, General</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Separatists make their first attack on the Citadel, and a deadly storm sweeps in!</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter is a little bit of a departure from the others, though I assure you there is still some fluffiness at the end, and next chapter there will be more of the cotton candy everyone loves from these two. Once again, I have to thank everyone who has been supportive and a loyal reader, or even just having read this far. Knowing that there are people out there enjoying my writing in these times makes me happy to have done something to make the world a nicer place even if its only for a few people. Plus I ate way too much ice cream trying to get in the right headspace for this chapter so no more Ben and Jerry's for me for a while! - Rose</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The screaming mortar shells flying through the air lit up the snowy battlefield until they finally died with a wretched boom into the deep snow, scattering searing hot scrap metal alongside the sloppy snow thrown into the air upon the impact. Fives instinctively flinched back behind his cover to shield himself from the blast that had landed a little too close for comfort, before peaking out and firing until the ends of his DC-17's hissed with heat, ducking back to wait for them to cool down. Vaught was crouched next to him waiting for an opening to return fire while Jesse was reloading. Across the courtyard Rex was holding the line slightly ahead of them behind a large column that had fallen, Hardcase was standing slightly exposed to the Captain's left, spraying and praying upon the battle droids that marched through the busted front gates to the city. Kix and Tup were up on the balcony behind them all, two rope cables hanging down from where they had climbed up, covering them all and providing a fallback point to the rest of them. The snow in the courtyard had been smashed into a mushy paste beneath countless footfalls of both machine and man, having melted in some parts to reveal the paved stone of the street like in the choke where they had the Separatist forces pinned now.</p>
<p>A low hum and three consecutive splat noises signaled the return of Adorsha, Coric and Denal. The Togruta flanked the two Clones, covering their descent on their cables from the promenade nearest to the city walls by deflecting the blaster bolts headed their way with both ends of her aquamarine lightsaber. "Push them back through the gate! Let's melt these metal-heads!" Adorsha cried out to rally them all, leading the charge as Rex moved out from his cover with Hardcase to join her and his two brothers to press the offense, Hardcase adding his own slurs to the mix of blaster fire in courageous joy. Fives followed suit with Jesse and Vaught, bringing up the rear was Kix and Tup, joining their brothers and their General on the ground after throwing some thermal detonators from their position on the balcony for good measure. Rex and Adorsha were the first ones to fight through the fray, the Jedi's blade dissecting droids left and right, sidestepping and flourishing the twin bladed saber to deflect more blaster bolts right back at the droids who had fired them. Rex joined her to spearhead the push, standing with his back to hers to return fire before covering Adorsha as she threw her lightsaber into the onslaught of the droids. Hardcase soon overtook them both when Super Battle Droids began to emerge through the gates with their lesser counterparts, suppressing the fire by supplying his own.</p>
<p>Fives fired his blaster pistol at the legs of one of the Super Battle Droids that had escaped Hardcase's wrath, the giant droid falling over with a hard clunk into the snow. Not taking any chances, he placed his boot on top of its blaster arm and fired down at its head, searing straight through its central processing unit, finishing it for good. His head snapped back up to attention when a booming noise, followed by a hiss, could be heard in the distance, the whole squad's blood seeming to drop to the same temperature as Rhen Var's icy core for a second as they realized it had come from outside the city walls.</p>
<p>"Disperse! Disperse! Scatter! Take Cover!"</p>
<p>Their chorus was drowned out from the thundering impact of the missile upon the city walls next to the gates, fire lighting up the darkness and splattering snow on those lucky enough to escape the shower of stone and ice that rained down upon them all. Fives dove behind the fallen pillar Rex had taken cover behind earlier, Jesse grabbing him by his shoulder guard to haul him back further from the open space as grey, slimy snow splattered against his helmet. He groaned as he wiped his visor with his gloved hand, looking at the sludge in disgust for a moment before throwing it violently to the ground.</p>
<p>"You alright, brother?" Jesse asked, turning him around to check he was still in one piece after that dive.</p>
<p>"I'm fine," He peaked over where they had taken cover and his stomach became dead weight weighing him down. The gates, and the stone surrounding them had been practically demolished, a tank with too many clankers to count beginning to converge on their position. Adorsha's voice came in from the open channel over their commlinks.</p>
<p>"<em>Rex, take your men and fallback to the main tower, there's too many of them and these streets aren't wide enough for AT-TE's, I won't let any of you die defending this dust," </em>They had underestimated their numbers, and that the Separatists would have found a way to get tanks equipped with missiles planetside through the storms and terrain. They all knew that there was no point in trying to defend a position that didn't exist anymore. Adorsha's voice came back over the commlink to add <em>"Go, I'll cover you!"</em></p>
<p>Rex chimed in <em>"You heard the General, fall back!"</em></p>
<p>Fives followed the light to Adorsha's lightsaber again as she jumped out in front of the approaching onslaught. He half expected for her to start hacking and slashing, holding her ground, giving them one target to focus on while they all could slip away before joining them. Not walking forward, into oncoming fire, only deflecting, hardly ever attacking. The wind picked up, the frosty flakes of the snow being blown with the dust still permeating the air. All he could see was red blaster bolts, and an aqua blue light occasionally moving sharply. What was she doing?! She was going to get herself killed!</p>
<p>"<em>Captain! The General-!" </em>He could hardly hear his own voice, the wind was so loud, the cold had begun to penetrate the protection of his gear, the grips of his DC-17's were practically black icicles beneath his fingers. There hadn't been a storm or a blizzard on the atmospheric radar at all when they had been strategizing at the war table that morning. Something of this magnitude they surely would have picked up, and now Adorsha was walking straight into it along with the chipbrain's blaster fire which… seemed to have stopped now that the wind was picking up. In fact, he couldn't hear anything except for the wind which howled in agony as it swept over them all, almost as if the force of nature was determined to go through them rather than over or around them. The snow it swept up with it hit Fives in the chest, and arm, splattering his armor with more grey sludge that knocked the breath out of him. All he could see of Adorsha was the faint glow of her lightsaber which wasn't moving at all anymore.</p>
<p>He and Jesse seemed to be the closest to her, even as they had to cling to the cover they once hid behind to stop the wind from pulling them around. He looked to the distant light, which remained still within the blizzard. She had ordered them to retreat, he had left his brothers behind on the battlefield when he couldn't do anymore for them, but she was still out there, caught between them, the bolt buckets, and stuck within the frosty inferno of the storm. Thankfully he didn't seem to be the only one unwilling to leave the Jedi Knight behind.</p>
<p>"<em>Fives! Jesse! Grab her!" </em>Rex's voice cut through the storm, and Fives was all too happy to obey. Using the stone to push himself up, Jesse did the same, boots stomping through the snow with the storm threatening to knock them off balance each time one of their legs left the ground. It was virtually impossible to walk towards her in a straight line, as the storm seemed to pick up the further the two ARC troopers pushed towards her. Jesse wiped snow off his visor with a wet hand, both holding their arms up as they made the effort to push forwards towards Adorsha. It felt like the planet itself didn't want them to reach her, both of them leaned into the wind as they made a 'U' shape to try and approach her from an angle where they weren't in danger of being thrown into the stone. Fives reached back and felt for Jesse, unsure if his brother was even still behind when a pyroclastic flow of relief melted his freezing flesh when his squadmate grabbed his hand.</p>
<p>"Keep going!" Jesse urged, holding his other arm out to try and shield his visor from the unrelenting gales.</p>
<p>Fives could see the outline of Adorsha in the light of her saber shadowed in the snow around her. When had the clankers stopped firing? She wasn't doing anything, did she not feel the storm? She just stood there, lightsaber still ignited, her hand stretched skywards and her chin tilted up.</p>
<p>"Got a visual Captain!" Fives reported to Rex, the commlink giving him only static in return "Captain? Rex?!"</p>
<p>"Must be the storm!" Jesse had to shout even though he was only an arms length behind him, it was hardly any wonder they couldn't get a signal "Keep moving!"</p>
<p>The duo inched ever closer to Adorsha, the nearer they got the onslaught of the storm became worse. In desperation, Fives called out to her "General!"</p>
<p>She stood there, unmoving, still as a statue.</p>
<p>"General Renon-Tir!"</p>
<p>She didn't even turn to look at them, their voices stolen by the ice wind. His lungs burned and his bones felt frozen. He reached out to her, fingers becoming immovable objects that felt foreign to his own body. It was as if she was in a trance, he had seen the Jedi do a lot of otherwise extraordinary things, but she couldn't have been the one controlling the storm, Rhen Var was a volatile planet with unstable weather patterns which had caused them to build the Citadel in the first place. He wouldn't leave her behind to become another one of those poor souls he had seen on the march forever immortalized in ice from being at the mercy of this hellish tundra.</p>
<p>"ADORSHA!"</p>
<p>He slammed his hand down on her shoulder and she whirled to look at him, breaking her trance and extinguishing her lightsaber as she ran with the two of them back the way they came, aided by the wind at their heels. Double-backing through the stone maze of the Citadel, they finally stopped behind the mercy of the inner walls of the Citadel, regrouping with the others.</p>
<p>Immediately Kix was on all three of them, Adorsha somehow seemed no worse for the wear despite being in the center of that storm. Jesse hadn't been as exposed to the cold before in the battle as Fives had, who Kix practically pounced on after he removed his gauntlets to reveal purple-tipped fingers.</p>
<p>"Jesse… Fives…" Adorsha looked at both of them apologetically, Fives could see the guilt in her eyes.</p>
<p>Even with his lips blue, he managed to smile at his Jedi "Good to see you're okay, General," they were all alive, and in one piece, which in his book meant his mission had been accomplished.</p>
<p>Rex came up to Adorsha "It appears the Separatists have called off their attack for now due to the storm, I don't think any of us were prepared for that," he reported as she kneeled next to Kix who was still checking Jesse over for frostbite. She peeled off her gloves to reveal purple palms, streaked with white on the back, carefully taking Fives' ice cold hands between her own to gently try to warm them.</p>
<p>"I suspect from the high winds they won't be able to approach the city any time soon, which means we can bolster what defenses we have left in the meantime," Adorsha sighed "There's no fixing that gate though, we'll have to drive them out through that hole as they'll most likely come through there on their next attack, or sabotage it to keep them at bay,"</p>
<p>"I agree Ma'am, the local forces will know more about those walls than we do, if their supports are underground there's a good shot of sabotage," Rex reasoned and Adorsha nodded. He knew what to do.</p>
<p>"What's the prognosis Kix?" Adorsha asked the medic in regard to the two ARC troopers.</p>
<p>"Frostbite, there shouldn't be any long lasting damage but they'll need heat," Kix answered, pulling back to examine where the ice had krept up Fives' skin.</p>
<p>"Have them rest in my quarters tonight," Adorsha smiled at Fives "I have a new heater that would do just the trick,"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Goodnight, Fives</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After saving Adorsha from the mysterious snowstorm, Fives and Jesse are taken care of personally by the General herself.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Slightly shorter chapter this time, but I think this chapter, for those who felt the previous one was a little too action-orientated, will really like this one. Fun fact, I actually completed this chapter at the same time I did the last one, but for the sake of consistency and not wanting one of my chapters to be buried with the other, I held off until today to post this so people could have time to read the previous one which is very imperative to this chapter. I'm not sure when this cute, fluffy oneshot became a full on romantic comedy with a plot but here we are! Once again, a huge thank you to everyone who has read up until this point, you guys helped me to rediscover a hobby that I had long forgotten that I enjoyed so much. I hope this latest installment continues to capture your imagination, and gives you the same warm, fluffy feels as the very first chapter.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Moving two more beds into her quarters had been thankfully less of a hassle than having to search out a third in the barracks the night her heater had blown. Adorsha looked over at Kix who was checking Jesse over one last time before it was the medic's turn to retire for the night. The heater was a relief for all of them after the battle, soothing the icy wrath of Rhen Var that took its toll on both ARC troopers, although that didn't stop Adorsha from continuing to hold Fives' hands to gently warm them. They were all looking at Jesse, who had dozed off before Kix could come and see the two of them, though none of them wanted to wake him when they all needed rest.</p><p>Kix rose from where he had been crouched at the end of Jesse's bed and went over to where Adorsha was sitting at the edge of Fives' bed "How is he?" she asked.</p><p>"He'll be fine, some sleep will do him a lot of good, heater is already working miracles to get his blood flowing back into his hands and feet," Kix reported and Adorsha sighed with relief.</p><p>"Thank you, Kix, you're dismissed for the night, go get your rest too," Adorsha gently advised.</p><p>"Call me if anything happens," Kix affirmed before leaving the trio.</p><p>Adorsha sat in silence for a moment, thankful for the heat that filled the room and clung to the stone walls and floor that had lulled Jesse to sleep as soon as he had been carried in and that Fives seemed to be basking in now.</p><p>It was Fives who broke the silence with the question that she had been dreading "That was you, wasn't it? The storm, I mean," he spoke quietly so as to not disturb his lightly snoring brother in the bed next to him "Something that big we would have picked up beforehand when we were planetside, and it wouldn't have come out of nowhere like that,"</p><p>She could have lied, told him no, that the meteorologist team had been incorrect which would have cast them all in a bad light, sacrificing her competence to hide her power. Her gut became as hard as the stone surrounding them. Would she ever have been able to forgive herself if she lied? For all Fives knew, she could have been lying regardless, though he would have believed her anyway. Clones were trained to trust in their Generals, their Jedi, and she had already trusted him to share a bed with her before…</p><p>"I had… never done it before," Adorsha took a deep breath "I didn't know it was going to be that bad, our objective had been destroyed, if I hadn't of done something-"</p><p>"You could have died!"</p><p>"And you nearly died regardless because I lost control!"</p><p>Both of them turned to stare over at Jesse, alarmed from how loud each of them had spoken and waited with baited breath to see if the other ARC Trooper stirred. Jesse made a soft noise, shifted to his otherside, and settled again. Fives and Adorsha let out simultaneous sighs of relief, their shoulders slumping in unison too.</p><p>Adorsha looked down, she couldn't meet his gaze, not after putting them all in danger again when she had been trying to protect them. It was her failure as a General, every man lost, to her, was another failure on her part in her eye. It might not have meant much to the Republic as a whole, but to the Jedi, to her, that was another life extinguished and sacrificed in the name of peace. Hence why she strove to minimize her losses. Sure it garnered scorn from some of the others in the Grand Army of the Republic, and even within the Jedi Order itself, but she couldn't care less about the glory. Not when there were lives at stake. Her men trusted in her, and when they died, she was breaking their trust and giving them one less reason to follow or have faith in her.</p><p>"It worked."</p><p>Her head snapped back up "Huh?"</p><p>"I said, it worked, General, the storm bought us some time, drove the tin cans off, and gave us the cover we needed to retreat," Yet she could hear the disapproval in his voice still "Still, you shouldn't of ran out like that, I thought you were going to be behind us not… not..." Now it was her turn to interrupt him.</p><p>"Not nearly dying trying to give my men time to retreat by making a huge storm using the force?" Adorsha supplied, he blinked at her "Fives, what kind of a leader would I be if I wouldn't be willing to give my life for my men? Would you even want to follow someone like that? Even if you were ordered to?"</p><p>Fives sighed in thought, he wouldn't like it, he wouldn't give a damn about them, but he would follow them regardless because it was what he was born to do "No, no I wouldn't," he hated the way his voice cracked and squeaked when he answered her. He turned his head towards the heater, his face still felt stiff, he could talk but he could practically feel his skin getting used to moving again after being frozen "I wouldn't follow them," he reaffirmed "I like following you, and General Skywalker, and General Kenobi or General Koon, I would follow any of you into battle any day, no matter what, because you lead us, you stand with us, you… care about us, when you shouldn't,"</p><p>Adorsha leaned down to him, bending over slightly "Why shouldn't I care about you, Fives?" she asked genuinely, her voice softer than the velvets he had touched when he had been on patrol in the exotic markets of Corellia.</p><p>"Because… you're a Jedi, we're clones," They were meant to be expendable, 'wet droids' as he had read before on the holonet. Technically they weren't even people in the eyes of the Republic. They had one purpose in life, a purpose they fulfilled when they died, only for another brother to take their place to carry it on. Orange light bathed the duo as heat continued to pour over them to bring the room up a few degrees, illuminating Fives while Adorsha remained half cast in shadow. Her eyes were half lidded as she contemplated his words, while his own followed the white patterns of her face.</p><p>Careful not to cause him anymore pain, Adorsha lifted one of Fives' hands, his eyes following where she was moving them before hastily retreating away, back to where Jesse slept.</p><p>She placed his hand over her chest. He wouldn't stare. He wouldn't dare.</p><p>"Well, looks like the blood is flowing back into your cheeks," She teased seeing his blush "What do you feel, Fives?"</p><p>He wished he could feel the softness of her skin, perhaps even trace the pattern that bisected her chest were his fingers not icicles at that moment. Still, he could feel one thing. One thing that gave him the most relief and that he had fought the wind, and the force itself, to ensure its safety.</p><p>"I can feel your heart, General,"</p><p>Now her hand was on him, sliding up his bare chest, skin still bumpy from the cold and a little wet from where he had peeled off his blacks after snow had seeped through. Her hand was resting over his heart which felt like a hammer on an anvil in his chest.</p><p>"What's that in your chest, Fives?" she asked him.</p><p>"It's my heart," that he could currently hear pounding in his ears, that he was sure up until an hour or so ago had been frozen solid "General, with all due respect I know what you're trying to say, but even animals have hearts,"</p><p>"Animals have hearts, and their own minds, like things, dislike things, and don't blindly follow commands even when they know it will mean their death," Adorsha corrected him "You are flesh, bone… you are a man Fives, you are as much a man as I am a woman, you are a man in my service, and I want my men to want to follow me rather than do it because they're obliged to, tonight I let you down, it won't happen again, the force brought us both together to fight this war, and I shall carry out its will, with you and your brothers at my side," She had never let them down, even now he wanted to tell her she had done the right thing but Fives couldn't say it. Not after she had put herself on the line for him, for all his brothers. He wouldn't let her do that ever again, at least not without him at her side to pull her back again. For the first time since Heavy's death, Fives felt he had a purpose, a true purpose, that he chose. He wanted to fight for her, at her side, as she upheld her mission as a Jedi to keep the peace.</p><p>She moved their hands back down, placing them over his chest to warm them again but Fives was reluctant to let go "Your hands are still freezing, here, just, let me-" Adorsha's concerned tone made him feel just a little bit warmer, and moved his blanket up to tuck him in a little bit more to his bed "There," she beamed.</p><p>"You know, we could always… share a bed, again, for warmth," Fives suggested, and secretly hoped she would say yes. That gave her pause as she went to stand up to return to her own bed. She turned back around, and for a moment Fives thought she was taking him up on that offer until she made no move to push back the covers, only bending over.</p><p>She kissed his temple, just over his tattoo "Go to sleep, Fives," she lightly chastised. It was as if all the snow and ice in his system suddenly melted and his heart was jumping faster than a live wire. He watched her take off her boots and coat to settle in for the night, turning her blanket into a cocoon of cotton wrapped around her tightly before placing her head down on her pillow and flipping the remaining material of her blanket underneath her feet. He wished he could have felt her against him again, to truly keep her safe from the cold and the clankers, but he didn't blame her for wanting to sleep in her own bed again either. At least he didn't need her lightsaber for him to see her this time, the dim orange light was enough.</p><p>"Goodnight," she yawned "Fives,"</p><p>"Goodnight… Adorsha,"</p><p>"'Night Jesse," she mumbled, and Jesse continued to snore.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Shout out to JimmyPenguin421 on FF last chapter for catching onto what was planned for this chapter lol. Yes, I do read the comments, any and all are appreciated along with all my people in Follows and Kudos land!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. What is that, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fives wakes up to find his General is already gone, thankfully Jesse is okay, but he isn't too thrilled about his Frostbite treatment...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Okay I didn't quite anticipate how long this chapter would get, nor how long it would take for me to write lol regardless I hope this was worth the wait! I won't keep you here any longer when its already been a while, so, I hope all my readers, both silent and the ones who review, enjoy this. I think you guys will love the ending to this chapter. Happy reading!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The night left as quickly as the snowstorm had come rolling in, Kix woke him up when he entered the room to check on how he and Jesse were coming along after their exposure to the deep cold. Thankfully Jesse seemed no worse for wear, and was cleared for active duty rather quickly after Kix verified he could move and feel all of his fingers and toes, he was sniffing a little bit, but he was coherent and his lungs showed no signs of fluid build-up. He had seen just about every man in the Battalion work through a common cold before, so they all knew he would be alright.</p><p>Fives on the other hand, was a little more worried about his fingers. They weren't purple anymore, but the tips and the skin beneath his nails was a deep, angry red. Kix rubbed some kind of ointment on all of them which gently heated them up a little more, though it felt tacky and dry afterwards.</p><p>"Feels weird," Fives mumbled, watching Kix's fingers rub the substance in circles over his skin, he sighed "This isn't going to feel good underneath my gloves, is it?"</p><p>Kix tilted his head as he worked "It should feel a little squishy inside once you put them on, I'd suggest putting some extra in the fingers just to make it last a little longer," it wasn't an order, but a suggestion on anything medically advised from Kix might as well of been an order regardless. Fives grimaced as he found himself squeezing the tube of paste into each individual finger of his glove, the white cream slowly forced its way out of the top and slopped into his glove. Kix helped him put them on so none of the cream got on the outside, it wasn't an overly unpleasant feeling as he had been expecting, although it did feel like he was putting his hands inside of freshly cooked, mint-scented, mashed potatoes.</p><p>Fives wiggled his fingers experimentally, standing up to test his left handed quickdraw as Kix backed off "You should feel a mild tingling sensation, your hands might get a little sweaty but otherwise your performance shouldn't be impeded," the medic explained as Fives tested his quick draw again with right hand, then both at the same time "If you or Jesse start to lose feeling in your fingers or toes again, let me know right away," he said it every time, but Fives knew Kix had to say it as a comfort for himself as well as for those he treated.</p><p>"Thank you, brother," Fives smiled, Kix nodding in return.</p><p>"General Renon-Tir wants to talk to you, I think she just wants to make sure you're alright, I overheard her and Rex talking on the way here - she was just as worried about the rest of us that you weren't going to be able to keep your fingers," Kix reported "Better go report to her yourself that won't be happening,"</p><p>"Where is she now?" Fives asked, dropping his hands back down to his sides, trying to ignore the feeling of the cream sloshing around his hands inside his gloves. His futile attempts to not cringe seemed to provide his older brother with amusement, he knew too it was infantile, although it didn't stop his face from contorting in revulsion. Kix gave a short chortle at how Fives was looking at his own gloved hands.</p><p>"She's in the Atrium of the Citadel Tower, they're trying to come up with the next course of action now that the East Gate is lost, still no sign of Rollies or Metal-heads yet, the snow dumped by that storm might be giving them terrain troubles," Kix answered, and Fives could see that being the case too. The droids the Separatists built might have served their purpose when it came to fighting, but for every specialized terrain they had to make something new, they couldn't adapt like they could.</p><p>"So am I cleared for active duty?" Fives asked Kix.</p><p>Kix nodded with a smile "For now, brother, for now," he walked with Fives as they both left Adorsha's temporary quarters, they would have to move the beds back to the barracks but that was a job for another time.</p><p>When Fives went to call the turbolift by hitting the button on the left of the doors, he nearly gagged feeling his finger poke through cream, then fabric, to touch the button. The cream was heating his fingers up nicely, the sensation however, was another story entirely. He knew it was childish, the cream was for his own good, however it didn't stop the ARC Trooper from clenching and unclenching his fists to feel the cream be squished and mashed around inside his gloves. Kix didn't say anything, hiding whatever he thought about his fiddling behind the neutral look they had all perfected long ago as cadets. The turbolift opened out onto the main deck of the tower, the whole floor having been turned into a command center monitoring the planet, the enemy movements, and keeping contact with their ships in orbit. A requisitions officer was taking note of his inventory on his datapad as Fives and Kix walked past him to the stairs. They ascended the tower together, the stairs spiraling up and around the whole room until they emerged in the atrium.</p><p>The room was nearly the same as downstairs save for the huge map in the middle, displaying a holomap of the city's, their men highlighted along with their vehicles. Fives could see that there was a marker over the hole in the wall of where the city gate they had been dispatched to now laid in ruin. Captain Rex was bent over the table slightly, examining where one of the AT-TE's was stomping around the perimeter of the city, seemingly deep in thought over what their next move should be for their defenses. When Fives looked to his General, he inhaled sharply, ignoring the way his heart jumped in his chest after what happened last night. Her weight was placed on her left leg, her hip cocked to the side, joining Rex in thought as her eyes too were glued to the map. The two Lekku that framed her chest were curled inwards at the ends, her lip quivered from the cold in a slight pout that melted into a smile when she looked up to see Fives and Kix, Rex joining her by returning to his upright stance with his arms folded behind his back seeing his two men.</p><p>"Captain Rex, General Renon-Tir," Kix greeted, Fives saluting with him, Rex doing the same in return and Adorsha waving to allow them all to be at ease "I have completed ARC Trooper Fives' health assessment successfully and with your approval, I would agree to have him return to active duty immediately, with prescribed ointment for his fingertips to clear up any remaining symptoms of frostbite," the medic reported.</p><p>"Thank you, Kix," Adorsha nodded courteously, turning her attention to Fives "How are you feeling, Fives?"</p><p>Truthfully, he had been sad when he had woken up. He had woken up expecting to see her, perhaps not still resting but perhaps getting ready. Upon reflection, he had found her words the night before invigorating, wanting to talk further with her on her own thoughts and what the Jedi thought of the war. Talking to her was different than talking to any of his brothers, not that he didn't want to hear them, he had just found their last two talks quite different. He wished to know more, more about what she thought, more about what she thought of him and the others with how she regarded them.</p><p>"Feeling sharp," Fives reported "Thankful to still have my fingers too, General, ready to return to duty, with your approval, of course,"</p><p>Rex spoke up to voice his own concern "Fives, you're a good soldier, however you were at least two feet ahead of Jesse in that storm, I don't think it would be wise for you to return to duty so soon with your fingers still being treated,"</p><p>Kix was the one to address those concerns before Fives even had a chance to "The topical heat cream should be enough to clear up any lingering effects of Frostbite, although I certainly wouldn't turn down the notion of keeping Fives under observation for a day or two more before returning to full duty,"</p><p>"Sirs I don't believe that's exactly warranted when Jesse and I both are in perfect help," Fives protested, really he wanted to be back on the line again with his brothers.</p><p>"Jesse didn't nearly lose his fingers, Fives," Adorsha pointed out, the General folded her arms and looked between them all "Fives, I'm placing you under my observation for one more day, I'm not putting you back out there in the freezing cold only for the frostbite to return, after that, Kix, would you be alright with keeping an eye on him?"</p><p>"Yes, sir,"</p><p>Adorsha looked to Rex "Rex, any objections?"</p><p>The Captain shook his head "None sir,"</p><p>Fives sighed, at least he would have company he supposed. Plus, it was just one more day. One more day couldn't hurt, and if something happened where everything devolved into chaos he could at least be part of the last line of defense.</p><p>"Rex, keep trying to get through to General Skywalker in the air, once we find where the separatist fleet is hiding on this planet the quicker we can go on the attack and clear them out," Adorsha ordered "From now on I'm also limiting patrol times, I'm not having any man freeze to death or get frostbite from staying out there too long,"</p><p>The Captain nodded with a "Yes Sir," adding on "We'll monitor each man individually and the weather to determine how much time they should be spending outside, if need be I'd recommend sending a request to requisitions and supply for snow gear should a storm like the one before hits us again, or see if we can acquire something from the locals in the meantime,"</p><p>Shortly thereafter discussing the troop and patrol movements, the meeting came to an end. Rex returned with Kix downstairs to go dish out orders with the latter no doubt going to check on Jesse. Fives found himself alone with his General, the two of them having walked away from the war table and out onto the balconies of their level on the tower. The air was bitter, Fives could feel the crispness of it on his tongue and in his nose when he breathed, the steam that rose from it warming his face a little when he asked "What time did you get up this morning, Sir? You look tired,"</p><p>The white markings that substituted for her eyebrows rose "No earlier than normal, though truthfully I didn't get much sleep," she confessed "I tried, though I spent most of it awake to make sure that you and Jesse were okay,"</p><p>"General, you shouldn't have-"</p><p>"A General makes sure their men are safe, Fives, if I didn't then I wouldn't exactly make a good one, much less a Jedi Knight," Adorsha chided him before he could finish his sentence "I… honestly thought about sleeping in your bed, again, with you,"</p><p>Fives was glad he wasn't the only one who turned red at her words.</p><p>"F-For your Frostbite, I mean, and to keep a closer eye on Jesse," Adorsha quickly added "In the end I just moved the heater closer to you both, you were shivering,"</p><p>"Of course," Fives coughed "Of course, General, I uhm-" he wished she would have taken him up on his offer, or stopped her from returning to her own bed to pull her down so he could hold her again. That night they had spent together had been the best night's sleep he'd ever had outside of Kamino, and last night, it felt like he'd hardly slept at all "I'm grateful, for your concern,"</p><p>Something caught his eye in the reflection of his armor when he raised his arm, it gave both of them pause, and turned both their gazes towards the sky. It had been completely clear since the storm, until now.</p><p>"General, what is that?" Fives asked, his hand drifting towards his belt instinctively, protectively taking a step closer to her.</p><p>Brilliant colours of green, purple and red streaked across the sky, weaving left and right as the wind blew. They reminded Fives of the legends of the Star Dragons he had read about in his spare time, they had been mysterious creatures of colossal proportions whose eggs resembled asteroids, and caused supernovas when they died.</p><p>"At ease, Fives," Adorsha's smile was the only thing in the universe in that moment that could have taken his eyes off of the skies. She touched the hand that had been resting on one of his pistols, and he allowed her to move it away, entangling their fingers and bringing their hands back down to their sides to show him there was nothing to be afraid of "It's a natural phenomenon that occurs in colder climates, every culture has a name for them, I believe in basic it's called an aurora borealis, on Shili we called them <em>Sevethatas</em>," she never took her eyes off of the lights, and she never let go of his hand "I… haven't actually seen them since I was a little girl on Shili,"</p><p>All Fives could look at was Adorsha's melancholy gaze of wonder "What was it like?" he asked "On Shili?"</p><p>Adorsha took a deep breath in, and out, the stars turning into their own galaxy in her eyes as her pupil's expanded, the lights reflecting within them too "It was peaceful, we lived in harmony with nature, not in spite of it, I was one of the few in my village who could speak basic, the villagers looked to my family as leaders, they were soothsayers of the force, as I understand it now,"</p><p>"I suppose you don't really get the same experience living on Coruscant huh?" Fives asked, knowing she had been trained at the Jedi Temple there and considered it to be her home.</p><p>"No, you… you don't, but I've learned something," Adorsha regarded Fives with the same warmth in her eyes she had when they'd first awoken together. Even now his frostbitten and slimy fingers within his gloves stayed entwined with her own, and in that moment, Fives decided the horrible sensation of the substance sloshing around his palms was worth it "I've learned that nature isn't just in its landscapes, it's within people too, such is the way of the force,"</p><p>Both Adorsha and Fives looked up at the sky, together, hand-in-hand. Neither one of them said a word, watching the lights dance in a moment of serenity after the storm, knowing it could be the last one they had before another storm, one neither of them could control, could end them all the next night.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): I know that was kinda long, but if you're still with me, thank you so much and please let me know what you thought of this chapter in the comments! I was also thinking about writing some NSFW stuff for these two as a bonus to my readers on here, if you guys want that let me know as well as I have a few ideas for some scenes, though they would probably not be included here and instead could be read as separate side stories. Either way, let me know what you think</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. What do you want to know, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Every wonder what laid beneath the waves of Kamino?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): This chapter is a little more lore heavy, although I have drawn most of it from the Star Wars wikia and combined it with some of my own ideas, I hope its interesting enough without being too distracting from our main story. That being said, I was truly touched with the outpouring of love the last chapter received, it was honestly the longest chapter and most difficult I'd had to write so far as I feared the middle was drawing out and had no idea how to end it. I'm glad I was able to break through the writers block though, and for that I think it was one of the better chapters I've made so far too. Honestly I'm hoping everyone will appreciate this one too, as I took some liberties with the lore as I said before, but I think it adds to our leads connection even more within the context of the story. Trust me though, even I've already thought about writing them kissing already, but I'm saving that for later, for now we all just have to suffer through together. Once again, thank you so much to all my commenters, followers/bookmarkers, and to everyone who has left kudos for all your support, along with the readers who have just discovered this story and have gotten this far, and I hope this chapter, while being different, is equally as enjoyable as the previous ones.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"What was Kamino like?"</p><p>The question snapped Fives out of the focus he'd been holding to accomplish his current task at the computer console, turning in his chair to look at Adorsha who stood over him with her arms folded and the spark of curiosity in her eye.</p><p>"What was Kamino like? You mean, growing up there?" He questioned, just to make sure he had heard her right. Why she would be interested in Kamino he had no idea, though that didn't mean he wasn't open to talking about it.</p><p>She confirmed his thinking with a nod "Rex told me once that most Clones consider it to be their homeworld,"</p><p>Fives sighed "Well… he's not wrong, though I wouldn't exactly say its home in the same sense that you would consider Shili, most of the cadets aren't even allowed outside until they've passed training," he had always seen the outside of the facility through windows until he had found out about his original squad's posting on Rishi. Even then he hadn't paid too much attention to the rain and overabundance of water, he'd been more focused on the fact they had passed their training and were finally leaving the place.</p><p>The Togruta took up the seat next to Fives at the computer, scanning it briefly with her eyes to see the weather conditions currently being stable "You never saw the outside world until you weren't a cadet anymore?"</p><p>"We had windows," Fives answered "For the most part, we were told it was too dangerous for cadets due to the storms, although…" he paused, wondering if he should even tell her about some of the stuff they had whispered to each other in the barracks at night. Some of it was inappropriate, the Kaminoans had tried to suppress their natural inclinations towards flirtations they had inherited from Jango Fett, with limited success. Although Adorsha had him questioning if that 'limited success' had actually just been a lie to the Republic so they would see the appeal in wanting more of them reproduced for the war. Still, he did suppose he could tell her one thing. One thing he had heard that he had confidence wouldn't offend his General "There was this… legend, I guess you could say, or erm, an unconfirmed sighting would be a better way to say it,"</p><p>He'd managed to capture her curiosity with a cock of her head "An 'unconfirmed' sighting?"</p><p>"In the water," Fives clarified "I don't know who, it was just- it's probably not even true, just something you heard around the barracks, apparently there were these two shinies out on patrol, there was a lightning storm occurring at the time and they were getting ready to meet up with the unit that was replacing them when the lightning struck the water," Adorsha leaned forward with her elbow on the console as Fives continued "Normally the waves, the rain and the froth is so thick it's impossible to see anything, but they… supposedly did, they saw something big in the water, something so big it stretched further than the City, its head was the size of a shuttle, with spikes running parallel down its sides in two rows," Fives described, remembering the legend he had been told as a cadet.</p><p>"Maybe they saw just a really big Saberjowl? I've heard those try to snap at Jedi Starfighters flying too close to the water," Adorsha suggested and Fives shook his head.</p><p>"I doubt it, Saberjowls are big but… not like this," Even now it gave Fives some hesitation remembering the nightmares of gaping jaws rising up from the ocean to swallow him, his brothers, the Kaminoans, and the entire city whole "We… The Kaminoans wouldn't hear of it, they dismissed it as a silly rumor, gossip that would serve for an entire company to be reprimanded should they let it distract them, so we didn't have a name for it in basic,"</p><p>"What about Mando'a?"</p><p>Now Adorsha had Fives' attention "I… I don't know what you're-" they weren't supposed to speak that in front of their commanders, it was classed as withholding information should their Generals not speak the language.</p><p>The ARC Trooper let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding when she smiled at him. Adorsha wouldn't do that to them, she was good to them. Skywalker, Kenobi, or Tano wouldn't do that to any of them. Their Jedi had been good to them, and Fives felt like he didn't have to hide anything from her.</p><p>"What did you call it, Fives?" she pressed him, the granite and marble walls reflected the torches that lit up the room to highlight the spark of curiosity held within her eyes.</p><p>He was helpless to answer "We called it <em>Illuyanka</em>, some of us think it's angry, or rather that we angered it," Fives knew that warranted some explanation, and before she could ask, he continued "Well, not us, the Kaminoans, but it doesn't like us, some of the cadets think that it makes the storms because they Kaminoans stole its water, and from its water we were born,"</p><p>Adorsha frowned "I thought the Kaminoans didn't believe in or hold such mythologies," she'd spoken to enough ambassadors to have them deny most force philosophy to her face.</p><p>"They don't," Fives confirmed "It's why they didn't like us talking about it either, that and, well, some brothers in my barracks I recall being punished for being so scared of the thing they made a shrine to it, some even believed that if you die on the field, if you can't be retrieved or your DNA recycled for the next brother to live, you go back to <em>Illuyanka</em>," he shook his head "You can imagine how happy they must have been to find out their soldiers had been harboring that belief,"</p><p>"It's… not too far off from what the Jedi teach about the force honestly," Adorsha conceded, pushing off from her elbow to sit up straight "There's the living force, and the cosmic force, when you die, you become one with it as your essence returns,"</p><p>Now it was Fives' turn to smile "Except the force isn't a giant sea creature that may or may not exist,"</p><p>"Correct, although-" she giggled "It could be, I don't know, maybe it is a giant serpent and we just can't see it because said serpent uses the force to stay invisible,"</p><p>Fives' shoulders relaxed at his General's satirical poke at their ideologies "I'm sure that would cause a bit of an uproar within the Jedi, wouldn't it?"</p><p>"I'd pay fifty credits to see Master Windu's reaction," she laughed, and Fives surprisingly found himself chuckling too, wondering what the 187th Clone Commander's reaction would be to finding out they were right, or perhaps the Kaminoans too.</p><p>He stopped however, when he saw one of his brothers looking at them from across the control room, when Adorsha noticed why he had stopped laughing they mutually looked at each other's feet. It looked like Adorsha was about to break the silence when the computer did it for them, Fives spun in his chair back to the console, bringing up where the alarm had been triggered. Adorsha got to her feet, saber already in hand.</p><p>"Alarm's been triggered in sector 2C, General!" One of the communications officers called out.</p><p>"Something's been picked up on the radar, not a storm either," Fives reported "We've got bombers incoming!"</p><p>Adorsha activated the commlink on her wrist "Captain, I need you and your men to man the anti-air defenses on the walls,"</p><p>Rex answered swiftly through the speaker <em>"Rex here, we're on it, Sir,"</em></p><p>She put her hand on Fives' shoulder to get his attention "Monitor the movement of those bombers, see if there's a pattern, Crest, Lupe," she called over to the other two communications officers from over her shoulder "Contact Skywalker and see if he can spare us some reinforcements in the air!"</p><p>A chorus of "Yes Sir!" rang out across the room as Adorsha fled to join Rex and the others on the ground.</p><p>Fives watched her go, Jesse would keep an eye on her, they all would. He just hoped that the force, or <em>Illuyanka</em>, or whatever divine being was listening would keep her and his brothers safe. When she disappeared entirely down the stairs, he turned back to his computer, opening the communications with Skywalker's fleet in orbit.</p><p>"This is CT-5555, requesting immediate reinforcements from-" Fives' eyes shot to the radar when something else was picked up by it, something large. It took up about half of the screen and his stomach curled, finishing his emergency request for reinforcements when he, Crest, Lupe and nearly all their equipment were launched from where they had all been sitting by the ground vibrating.</p><p>He managed to catch himself from completely falling by using the desk to prop himself up on his knees. He winced as the heating cream inside of his gloves squelched and quelled the feeling of disgust as he put his helmet back on from where it had been thrown from the desk across the room.</p><p>"Kriffing chaos, what was that?!" Lupe cursed, getting up from the floor, turning to the radar screen. The scream of engines was far too close for any of the clones in the room to be comfortable with, along with the explosions that accompanied them, rattling the building even more.</p><p>"There's the bombers," Crest grumbled.</p><p>Fives looked back up to the radar, the large blob wasn't moving anymore, it was stationary. When the enemy was stationary and the gunfire was as heavy as it was, it always signaled trouble or things were about to go from bad to worse.</p><p>"I've got a bad feeling about this," Fives muttered, reopening the line of communication only to be greeted with static "This is CT-5555, requesting reinforcements and air support, a large unidentified enemy has penetrated the Citadel's defenses and we need backup!"</p><p>The tower trembled again, the ARC Trooper held himself steady on the desk. Peering behind him, he could see Lupe and Crest steadying their equipment "No response!" Lupe called out "Looks like the communications relay has been damaged by whatever… that thing is,"</p><p>Crest asked the question that was on Fives' mind too "What about local communication?"</p><p>Fives activated his commlink "General Renon-Tir! Can you read me? What's going on down there?!"</p><p>"<em>Fi… can't… it's a new… drill on the-" </em>The hiss of static interrupted whatever she was trying to say. He knew that he had his orders, but whatever this thing on the screen was, he decided he wasn't about to let his brothers and his General be left a man down already.</p><p>"Keep trying to contact General Skywalker! I'm going down there!"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, I know its a little different than the others, but if you liked it be sure to let me know in the comments!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. General?! Come in! General?!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Many perils come scurrying in the darkness...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Alright so I have to confess, originally this was supposed to be two different chapters, but I was on the ball so much with this one that I decided to keep it as one so as to not ruin the tone of the overall story. Although this is a very plot-heavy chapter, we do have a bit of a development between our two leads towards the end! No kiss yet, unfortunately, but after everything that happens here, our fluffy cotton candy at the end is very much earned. Nonetheless, I hope you all enjoy, this one is for all my commenters, those who have left Kudos, bookmarkers, silent binge and regular readers alike. I hope I can continue to bring you all the content you enjoy, and I hope you enjoy the emotional roller-coaster this chapter takes us all on!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Adorsha had been bracing herself for when the Separatists would make their move, assigning men to defend the walls was one thing, practical for siege preparation as she had anticipated. Which was why she was trying to reconcile now that she couldn't have prepared for what they had done to penetrate them, not the walls, their defenses. For now, the walls remained intact aside from the one the missiles had hit that took down the East gate.</p>
<p>The ground however, was now a gaping hole that had been torn through the ice and upwards into the city. She hadn't seen the Commander Droid in charge of the Separatist forces at all during the siege of the Citadel. Though Adorsha supposed that didn't exactly matter now, as they appeared to have decided if they couldn't have the Citadel, then neither could the Republic. The ice thundered as it splintered and cracked apart, sinking into the abyss below that the Separatists had drilled through and up with their shiny new drill tank that had blown their Walkers and Tanks apart the moment it had surfaced. It appeared their appeal for backup had worked, as Y-Wings screamed in the skies, dumping their payloads on the droid's new toy, the size of the tank made it impossible to miss. Unfortunately for everyone on the surface, the impacts of the bombing runs only served to destabilize the ice even more.</p>
<p>"Tup!" Adorsha turned to see Dogma sliding to grab his brother, who had nearly fallen into one of the chasms when the ice had shattered beneath his feet, hauling him back up. Meanwhile, Adorsha herself deflected what blaster bolts she could to give her men the chance to fall back to stable ground, Hardcase was at her side, hosing the enemy down with suppressing fire. Rex flanked her, returning fire with his pistols to give the Rookies at the front support, and a way to retreat. The ground trembled beneath them in a convulsion violent enough to throw every man and machine alike up into the air as it rose, then dropped.</p>
<p>"Everyone! Hold onto something!" Were the only orders Adorsha was able to issue before they too were swallowed up by the icy chasm and plunged into darkness.</p>
<p>When Adorsha came to, she didn't know what felt worse, her pounding head, her aching legs, or the voice and static assaulting her ear from her commlink.</p>
<p>
  <em>"Gen… this-... can anyone…"</em>
</p>
<p>The scream of static made her twist in pain to try and get away from the noise, only as she twisted, she found her arms were practically glued to her sides. Something was wrapped around her, holding her perfectly still. She could open her eyes, though a milky white substance covered them in a fine film she was still able to see a small distance, enabling her to make out the appearance of her surroundings. She was underground, there was a light coming through the passageway which was able to give her enough light to see, though it was dim at best. Reaching out with the force only made her wish she never had, wherever death's stench did not permeate, agony's filth grew. The suffering writhed in her gut like a parasite threatening to eat her from the inside out, the walls screamed with the cries of thousands of doomed souls, screams that echoed and reverberated through her spirit. Exclamations and proclamations of horror that she realized, weren't just coming from the cosmic force.</p>
<p>The distant echoes all blended into a chorus of gore between the physical and the metaphysical, a groan of pain ripped itself from the Jedi's throat to join them in their collective torment. There were voices, so many voices, so many silenced too soon that now called out to her.</p>
<p>"<em>Come in… any-... surviv… Sky…"</em></p>
<p>
  <em>It's so dark, why is it so dark?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>This can't be it, I can't die like this!</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>What is that?! I'm burning!</em>
</p>
<p>Her spine bent forwards as she screwed her eyes shut, her teeth clenching inside her skull as she tried in vain to fortify her mind to block them out, to ignore them, anything to get them to stop. <em>No, please, I'm sorry I- I'm sorry- this is all my fault… this is all my fault...</em> She had failed them, all of them. Her men didn't have names anymore, they were just numbers now, a collective figure in a casualty list that would be filed away in some report, never to be seen or heard from again. A consequential tragedy of what had befallen the Citadel on Rhen Var alongside its citizens, born from her own hubris.</p>
<p>The bindings of her tight prison never gave as her form quaked inside. Hot tears in the corners of her eyes bound the substance tighter to her skin, grafting it to her and quickly drying the more she was plunged into despair. Her men would never be found, she would never be found down here, she didn't deserve to be found after what she had done. This would be her grave, and her fate, to be alone, forgotten, just like her men. A muted scream of anguish joined those that saturated the force around her, throwing her head back as she sobbed, squirming in her prison.</p>
<p>
  <em>I don't want to die, I don't want to die! I don't want to die!</em>
</p>
<p>"Here itsy-bitsy spider! Come up the water spout! Here comes the heat to wipe you the kriff out!"</p>
<p>Adorsha's eyes snapped open, honing in on that voice as a beacon of light in the darkness that surrounded her. Air filled her lungs with a new clarity and crispness that she cherished through her bondage. She fixated on that voice, she was sure she had heard it echoing through the cave, bouncing off of the walls instead of seeping through it.</p>
<p>
  <em>Fives?</em>
</p>
<p>Was he even still alive? He had to be, he was an ARC-Trooper, the best of the best, the elite, as said by Master Kenobi himself. She clung to that small hope, she reached out with the force. They had touched only hours ago, and before that she'd felt his heart beating beneath her hand, his breath on her lips, if he was dead, she would have felt it through the force. Then again, she had been wrong before. Her wrong, was the reason she was entombed now. She reached for that hope, outstretching her senses towards that light, desperate to just touch it, to make sure it was real-</p>
<p>
  <em>There's something here with me. It's watching me. It's… hungry.</em>
</p>
<p>Something scratched and scrabbled at the icy floor, taps repeating in succession that got louder and louder as whatever thing was with her in the cave inched closer to the tied up Jedi. She wriggled again trying to get free, the gaze of whatever was watching her allowed her to see its mind, see her from its point of view. It didn't see a Jedi, it saw flesh, bones… a delicious meal waiting to be digested. Adorsha's blood ran colder than the ice that made up the walls, staring down with wide eyes at the creature who regarded her in such a succulent manner.</p>
<p>She was staring down at a spider. A large, milky white spider with all eight of its hungry eyes piercing into her soul. The crystalline fibers that made up its furry body gleaming, almost transparent in the dim cave light as its salivating fangs quivered at the sight of her.</p>
<p>The spider scurried up to Adorsha, never taking its eyes off of the Jedi, using those fibers to clamber up her tightly encased body. It squeezed Adorsha, crushing her with all eight of its legs, her ribs threatening to crack under the same pressure her mind had already fractured from. A whimper of alarm turned into a scream, it's fangs starting to drip with a teal coloured substance that sizzled when a droplet hit the ice, leaving a small crater in its wake. A foul scent rose up from the smoke in the crater, assaulting her olfactory senses even through her bindings.</p>
<p>Adorsha scrambled, fumbled, fiddled around with her belt. Her lightsaber, where was her lightsaber?! If she could find it, she could get the beast off of her, she could kill it, impale it through the chest and vanquish it before it could stomach her. With the other end of the saber she could cut herself free, look for survivors and-</p>
<p>"<em>Gheeee!" </em>She wheezed, the shameful noise being squeezed out of her lungs, priming its fangs as it reared back, ready to pierce the tender flesh lying within the silken ropes it had created to hold her. This was it, this would be her end, to be turned into soup and join the choir of lost souls inside of the ice.</p>
<p>"Hey ugly!" The same voice from before called out again "Eat heat!" The charge of a Z-6 Rotary cannon was the interlude to the pain. Adorsha could feel through the force that brought her back to her senses temporarily as blaster bolts seared the Spider's chitin on its back, the large insectoid screeching as it jumped off of Adorsha and onto the floor, hurdling itself towards its attackers to try and counter them. The Rotary cannon fired again, unleashing the storm contained within its barrel until the monster let out a final wail of farewell, curling up on its back with its legs pronged up and inwards.</p>
<p>The sheen of a knife being drawn from its sheath had Adorsha's lekku at attention, then all the woe spilled like lava into her veins as she felt herself being freed. The Jedi had never been more grateful for oxygen than when she was able to finally take a deep breath in, and out. Her legs gave out, and two pairs of arms steadily lowered her to the ground to sit.</p>
<p>"General," Hardcase took his helmet off as he knelt in front of her, Tup doing the same as he propped her up on his knees from behind "General, are you alright? It didn't bite you, did it? We weren't to late, were we-"</p>
<p>Tup gave Hardcase a stern look, his brother falling to concerned silence as he repeated the initial question Hardcase had asked, and the one question Adorsha was least prepared to answer "General, are you alright?"</p>
<p>Words failed Adorsha, she wasn't alright, the word 'alright' was a complete anathema to this whole situation. Even now, Tup and Hardcase looked to her for an answer, the concern weighing on their brows as Hardcase's eyes searched hers for not just the answer they hoped for, but for the lie Adorsha knew she had to uphold if there was a chance any of the others were alive too.</p>
<p>"Ye-Yes," she gurgled with a nod of her head "I… I am fine, I… I think I lost my lightsaber," Adorsha confessed reluctantly. If it wasn't on her belt and she couldn't sense it in the room, the Knight knew it was most likely long gone by now. With her vision no longer obscured, she was able to get a better look at the cavern she had been trapped in, she had some questions of her own for the duo. "Where are we? How did you two find me? Where are the others?"</p>
<p>Adorsha looked up and over her shoulder at Tup when he was the one to speak first "We believe we're in some kind of nest for the native wildlife, General, when the ground collapsed it opened up a secondary entrance and they saw us as a… free meal," his face screwed up at the implications.</p>
<p>"I found Tup backed into a corner by two of those things," Hardcase nodded over to the dead insectoid in the corner "I woke up nearer the surface, I heard Tup though and decided to turn around," instead of heading for the surface, driven by his duty and his brother's cry, Hardcase had marched straight back down to hell in the hope he could reach them before their screams could be snuffed out entirely.</p>
<p>Adorsha smiled at both of them "I'm proud of you," she sniffed "Both of you,"</p>
<p>The two troopers exchanged a look for a long silent moment. After a moment of warm reflection of their General's praise, they wordlessly helped their Jedi get to her feet. Adorsha swayed, and Hardcase was there to steady her "You uh, you sure that thing didn't bite you, General?" Tup asked.</p>
<p>"It didn't bite me, I'm just… dizzy," A little white lie wouldn't hurt them if it meant they could all get far away from here much faster "Anyway, nevermind me, what about the others?"</p>
<p>Hardcase put his helmet back on, after which, he answered "There's been chatter on the comms but its scattered,"</p>
<p>Tup corroborated further "There's been some transmissions from the surface, I don't think we're being jammed, I think we're just too far underground to get any proper signal, and equipment damage is something that has to be accounted for from the fall too,"</p>
<p>If Tup was telling the truth, surface transmissions meant Skywalker might have been searching for survivors. Adorsha knew however they couldn't head upwards just yet, not without finding the others first "Do you remember the way back to the surface, Hardcase?" She asked hopefully.</p>
<p>"We cracked a glow stick and we've been leaving the fluid on the walls to know where we've been," That was a smart move even Adorsha didn't know if she could have come up with by herself "We should probably get moving before anymore of those things show up," he nodded over the the dead arachnid.</p>
<p>Adorsha couldn't help but agree "Let's get going."</p>
<p>The cave, or nest, Adorsha supposed, might as well have been a labyrinth. The cruel construct of nature had served as a home for thousands if not millions of the giant spiders judging by the large clusters of broken eggs they passed that encompassed entire passages from floor to ceiling. This had been their home, one that Adorsha, the Clones, and the Droids had disturbed. Nature appeared to spare none of them, although the spiders couldn't eat the droids, the trio marched by semi-melted battle droids, their circuits still sparking from having been live only hours ago. More than once the group navigated across large, sticky webs ground into the floor that they made sure to cross quickly before the vibrations could alert any more inhabitants of the nest. Hardcase led the way forwards, keeping his repeater primed for the next battle whilst Adorsha stayed closely behind, using the cracked glowstick the former had spoken about to mark the walls with Tup's teardrop, the Clone himself meanwhile took guard at the back with his rifle.</p>
<p>Eventually they came to a larger room, with a hole in the ceiling where snow trickled in and the light shone off of the glassy webbing Adorsha knew all too well. Currently, they all stood in the rocky entrance way, spying the three spiders scurrying around the web. Droid parts were entangled within, some of them even stuck to the wall in contorted positions where it looked like they too had fought their impending doom until they had been gutted of their wiring. None of the trio mourned for their enemy, despite feelings of disgust creeping in for their mutual current foe.</p>
<p>"I don't think they've seen us yet," Tup kept his voice quiet and his weapon primed just in case any of the spiders ventured too close. Adorsha took another look at the webbing, reluctantly stepping onto the sticky mass of fluids with one foot, then tapping on it, repeatedly. The spiders they had initially spotted started heading towards them all, Hardcase and Tup both taking aim when Adorsha pulled her foot off.</p>
<p>The Spiders paused, chittered, then scurried back into the darkness from whence they had come.</p>
<p>"Interesting," Adorsha commented "I don't think the Spiders can see us when we're not on their webs, my theory is they use the webs to make up for their sight through the vibrations, kind of how a regular spider on another world would use to catch his prey,"</p>
<p>"Speaking of," The light on Hardcase's helmet shone onto a bound, writhing mass in the webbing that all three of the spiders were stalking up to.</p>
<p>"Tup- knife!" Adorsha commanded and Tup handed it over "Mow them down!" she pointed and the two of them both open-fire, Hardcase's repeater shredding the legs of one spider while Tup's blaster made another scream and scurry away with molten holes in its chitin. Adorsha took care of the third, jumping with the force behind her step and landing on top of the creature, stabbing it over, and over, and over, never stopping until her arms ached and she heard that final scream of life before leaving its hideous body.</p>
<p>Instantly she was on her feet, cutting at the webbing with Hardcase standing by in case more showed up and Tup facing in the other direction for the same reason. Adorsha held onto them as she cut them free, clean white armor with absent markings indicating their rank and their status among her men. They didn't say anything once they were free, only letting out small whimpers of fear and confusion as his shoulders quaked. Adorsha had her arm around them to hold them upright so they could lean on her.</p>
<p>"What's your name, soldier?" Hardcase asked.</p>
<p>They didn't respond.</p>
<p>"It's okay," Adorsha tried gently, and they whipped their head around to look at her, "Can I remove your helmet, trooper?" she requested softly, moving her hands up to take it off. They still didn't say anything, although they made no move to stop her either. Their hands actually came up to help after a moment, and they let it drop to the floor. Adorsha examined their face for any identifying features, a tattoo, a scar, anything, however the only thing she could note were the soldier's eyes. One was brown, the other was blue.</p>
<p>This time, Tup tried to ask "Do you have a name, brother?"</p>
<p>"N-No,"</p>
<p>"CT number?" Adorsha pressed.</p>
<p>"C-CT- CT- General I can't-" They stuttered, seeing his struggle Adorsha put her finger to his lips. The fear practically wreaked from the poor rookie, but, as his General, she did her best to smile at him.</p>
<p>"It's okay," She assured them, and the rookie stopped talking "Why don't we call you… Sarid?" she looked to Tup and Hardcase, making sure that was okay with them, both of them shrugging. She got the feeling they probably didn't want to stay in the same place for too long looking after a newbie when their brothers were still out there.</p>
<p>"O-Okay," Sarid sniffed, starting to calm down "Sarid, I… I like that, I think," Tup handed him back his helmet as Adorsha let go of him.</p>
<p>"Does your commlink still work, brother?" Hardcase asked.</p>
<p>"It does, I could hear the others, it was too static to make out though," Sarid answered in dismay, with the four of them now, it meant there was a greater chance the others were still alive. Adorsha found herself clinging to that hope just as much as her men. Although forming attachments was forbidden by the Jedi Order, she knew for a fact they didn't condone getting everyone who depended on her to be killed by either battle, or external digestion via spider venom for that matter.</p>
<p>"Alright, Hardcase, take point, Tup, behind, Sarid, use your commlink to try to get through to the others-" Adorsha couldn't get out her orders before the noises of hope with an accompaniment of gunfire.</p>
<p>"<em>Come here you eight legged freaks! You want some o' this?! Come get some!"</em></p>
<p>The quartet rushed off towards the source of the commotion, Sarid still taking Adorsha's half issued order as law, desperately tried to reach anyone on the open channel. His chattering was nowhere near as loud nor as frantic as the ensemble of insults and blaster bolts incoming from the corridor. The group dispersed to the walls when a stray blue blaster bolt flew by them all, shouts accompanying the song of spider screams.</p>
<p>"If anyone can hear this, this is CT-2404, I have three survivors with me, is anyone out there?" Sarid pressed the transmission button as they all took to the walls to keep clear of anymore stray blaster bolts.</p>
<p>"<em>CT-2404 this is Captain Rex! Where are you, who's with you?!" </em>Rex's voice sounded closer than the commlink's channel might have suggested.</p>
<p>"I-I've got the General with me, Sir!" Sarid passed the signal to Adorsha so she could follow up while Sarid grabbed their signal's location.</p>
<p>"Hang in there Rex! We're on our way!" Adorsha pleaded with him, all four of them taking off down the passageway. Hardcase's and Tup's lights shone on the walls of the cave, illuminating dead spider after dead spider riddled with blaster marks, hurrying them forwards through the darkness on the renewed hope that their Captain was alive. Perhaps, if he was still alive by the time they reached him, that meant there would be others with him. Which, in turn, meant Adorsha wouldn't have failed them entirely. The mission was gone now, the city with it, but if she could still find them and get them out of this icy hell there might have just been hope for her yet too.</p>
<p>When they finally reached where Rex's broadcast had originated, it looked like the aftermath of a large battle. Blue blood caked the ground in gruesome splatters over machine and man alike, bits of chitin and armor were scattered around like some fleshy scrapyard, with droid wiring mixed in for good measure. The cavern itself was much larger than the one Sarid had been trapped in, so much so that while Tup and Hardcase's lights were able to illuminate their brothers, they couldn't reach the cave walls. They had camped near a large hole in the ceiling, there was too much distance for them to climb up with what little equipment they all had, but it was their best shot at being found by Skywalker if he really was organizing search parties.</p>
<p>Kix was quick to check them over for any damage the venom might have done to them, meanwhile Rex gave Adorsha the rundown.</p>
<p>"After the ground collapsed I woke up to one of those… things trying to wrap me up down here, once I was able to get free I was able to free the others too, some of us… weren't so lucky," Rex gazed over at a bloody, deflated sac of webbing that Adorsha got chills from just looking at, knowing she had nearly resigned herself to that fate if it hadn't been for Hardcase and Tup "I think they took the bulk of us back here, save for a few of us who found our way back here like you did,"</p>
<p>Adorsha looked around, doing a headcount and her stomach sank seeing just how many of them were missing or injured, trying not to think about one alternative that could have happened to the former "I did however-" Rex reached for his belt "Find this, thought you might have wanted one of us to keep it safe,"</p>
<p>Rex held out Adorsha's lightsaber for her to take and she looked down at it in surprise, wondering just where Rex had found it. Then, the doubt in the pit of her stomach began to gurgle again. Sure, they might have been alive, and mostly in one piece, but that wasn't her doing. Right now, she figured Rex was more worthy to hold that weapon than she was, after all, he'd managed to get most of the men together. Even more impressive, he'd managed to coordinate everyone to hold this point until she, Hardcase, Tup and Sarid could find them.</p>
<p>Rex looked between her and the blade "You alright, General?"</p>
<p>Adorsha didn't know the answer to that question, her whole form was tense. What could she say to him that wouldn't alarm him or the men? She was supposed to be their rock, after all.</p>
<p>A large hand setting itself on her shoulder nearly made her jump out of her skin until she looked behind her.</p>
<p>"I think the General's hands are cold, Captain,"</p>
<p>"Fives!" She squealed in surprise when he touched her montral, making her shiver from the sensation of his warm glove on her sensitive, cold skin.</p>
<p>"Yeah, she's cold," Adorsha didn't know if she wanted to hit him for that stupid smirk on his face or kiss him. Nevertheless Adorsha snatched her lightsaber from Rex's hand and shoved it on her belt as she saw him try not to smile in amusement.</p>
<p>"I'm not cold," She mumbled weakly in protest, only to make another noise she wished she hadn't made when Fives' hand slid down her montral and down the back of her lek "Okay, I'm- I'm cold," she whined, trying not to lean into the touch to keep her decency in front of them all.</p>
<p>"Fives, take our Jedi to Kix and make sure she gets some rest," Rex flicked his eyes over to his ARC Trooper "That's an order,"</p>
<p>"Yes sir,"</p>
<p>Adorsha had no idea if Fives was always holding a blanket or not, but she did not object when he wrapped it around her shoulders. Her hand held both sides of the cloth together, leading her over to a small area near where Kix was seeing to the wounded. She went to sit down on the cave floor when Fives stopped her, and she cocked her head at him wondering what he was doing when he sat down first, then pulled her down to sit between his legs and lean back against him. Too tired to object, she kept the blanket pulled tight around her as he put his hands on her again. Her whole body seemed to melt into him as his hands massaged her lekku and montrals, warming them gently as she purred from the feeling. The rampaging tempest in her mind that hung over her as she traveled through the depths of the spider's nest with her companions became quiet, just for a moment, as she allowed herself to sink into Fives' surprisingly gentle touch. She was safe here, with him, he had kept her safe in the storm and he was doing the same thing now.</p>
<p>"<em>Mesh'la," </em>She heard him whisper as she started to doze off a little <em>"Ner mesh'la jetii,"</em></p>
<p>"Hm?" Adorsha rumbled, eyes cracking open a little "What did you say?" she looked back at him "Fives?"</p>
<p>"... Nothing," Fives answered after a long pause "Go to sleep, General, you need it."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Thank you so much for reading! Please let me know what you think of this chapter and the story so far in reviews, don't forget to follow and favorite to stay updated on when the next chapter drops! Oh, and if you're wondering what Fives said;</p>
<p>Ner mesh'la jetii = My Beautiful Jedi.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Hey there, General</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fives gets a reason to resent Dogma, Rex is tired, and things go from bad to worse for Tup.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): This chapter isn't as long as the previous one, but I figured after how dark that one got, it was time for a little more fluff here to pick up where we left off. I will admit this took a little bit longer to write as well, as the intro of this chapter was initially completely different. However, I ended up not liking that one after I wrote the intro here, but I don't regret scrapping the other one as the same story beats are hit here. Either way, I hope you guys all enjoy this chapter given how dark the previous few have been, so here's a nice reprieve... for a time lol. Once again, I have to thank everyone who left comments on the last chapter, I read them all and it always makes my day to see people are enjoying reading what I love writing, to all my silent readers, I see you and appreciate you just as much as my people who have bookmarked and left kudos this story and keep coming back for more. Now to those who have just binged every last chapter and are reading this one - you guys are the true heroes of the Republic!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>The steam from the pool rose up to tickle and heat up Adorsha's skin. She dipped below the water to warm herself up from the cold air of the room. Her lips sank into a smile, running her hands along the length of her twin lekku down the curves of her chest all the way down, right to where the tips touched the water.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fives could only sit and watch, wondering just when he had become the luckiest man in the galaxy. He leaned back against the backrest of the bench, his mouth felt dry, and his heart heavy. The bikini was a new addition to her wardrobe, but the requisitions officer had owed him still for that game of sabacc, and the sight of Adorsha now was so, so worth it. The whole ensemble was in two separate pieces, three black straps rose higher and higher on her hips all the way to just below her waist, barely keeping her modesty while the top did the same to her chest, two black straps bisecting all the way down and crossing her white markings, and framing the ones on her ribs. Golden beads shone in the reflections of the ice and the light on her collarbones, peeking out from underneath her lekku.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Do you like it?" he asked her, unable to hide the hunger in his voice for his General, especially with the irresistible sight in front of him. Adorsha bent down, the water dripping off of her as she settled over him to straddle his lap. His hands came up to support her while Adorsha wrapped her arms around him. Fives could feel her, hear her purring loudly against his chest.</em></p><p>"<em>I love it," She smiled "Thank you, Fives,"</em></p><p>"<em>Ner mesh'la jetii," Fives leaned up to touch his lips to hers, only for her to pull away and stand up.</em></p><p>"<em>Fives," Adorsha said again, her tone a lot more firm, and the ARC Trooper stood up to follow after her.</em></p><p>"<em>Adorsha? Are you-"</em></p><p>
  <em>She jabbed her finger at his arm "Hey!" he yelped in alarm and confusion "Adorsha-?"</em>
</p><p>"<em>Fives!" Adorsha jabbed him in the arm again, harder this time, right into his bicep.</em></p><p>"<em>Adorsha- can you stop-"</em></p><p>"Fives! Move over!" With a hard shove Fives was thrown out of his wonderful dream and back into his miserable reality. Groaning, he threw his arm over his eyes. He didn't want to wake up, sure he wanted to be in his brothers and General's company, but he could have gone without the fact they were all stuck inside a spider's nest awaiting rescue from General Skywalker. In fact, Fives wondered, hoped even, this was all a horrible nightmare he would wake up from any second now by Rex throwing the doors open of the ARC berthing and screaming for them all to get up for early morning training. Followed by the thud of Jesse falling out of his bunk above him.</p><p>"Urgh," Fives gurgled, finally removing his arm and opening his eyes, looking into the annoyed and exhausted gaze of Dogma "What Dogma? What do you want?"</p><p>"Move, you're taking up too much room," Dogma complained, eyebrows settling into a deep frown as he sighed "There's only one heater, Rex said it has to be near you and Jesse 'cos of Kix's orders, everyone's gotta sleep over here, and you're taking up too much room, move over,"</p><p>"I was laying on my back-"</p><p>"Move!" Dogma hissed and Fives rolled his eyes, moving to lay onto his side. He saw Adorsha, laying on her side still bundled up in his blanket he'd given her. Admittedly, he was a little dismayed that she was in her winter gear and not what that Twi'lek model had been wearing on the first page of that datapad that had mysteriously found its way into his possession back on the Resolute. Fives was fairly sure it was still under his bunk if they hadn't already found and confiscated it by now. At the very least, she looked warm all snuggled up tightly in the extra layer of wool. His armor scraped against the stone as he shimmied closer to Adorsha. Briefly, he looked over his shoulder to glower at Dogma but he forgot the reason why he was angry when he heard her move. Fives turned his attention back to Adorsha when he felt her cuddle up to him, sighing softly as she settled down with her face hidden in the white plastoid of his chestplate. Nothing felt more natural than when he wrapped his arm around her, honestly he would have done it to any one of his brothers in need, however he knew that his General needed this the most right now. She looked exhausted, although that was normally par for the course when a mission had gone far past south at this point. Although the markings of her face hid it well, he could also see the remnants of tear tracks staining the corners of her eyes from where she had cried at some point. That was the only excuse he needed to hold her, snaking his other arm underneath her and moving them both so that she was on top of him. They had been through a lot, they all had. Fives doubted he was as comfy as a proper mattress in a heated room, but she was at least somewhat better off laying on him, rather than the cold stone of the cave floor.</p><p>What little supplies they had been able to retrieve had been put together in a makeshift camp. Everyone who was sleeping or injured was crowded around the same space he, Adorsha and Dogma all shared. The little heater wasn't much, it barely kept the chill at bay, however Fives would have taken one heater between them all than none at all. It was for that reason he couldn't exactly blame Dogma for being grouchy, not when they all were sleeping rough with the chill creeping in. Hearing voices whisper, Fives looked around to see a very weary Kix talking to an exhausted Rex.</p><p>"...You're no good to any of us if you're falling asleep on your feet," Kix was probably the only one who could chide Rex like that and not have the Captain clap back at him.</p><p>"One of us needs to keep watch, I'm hoping General Skywalker finds us before those… things get hungry again," Rex couldn't stop himself from starting to yawn, and clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle it.</p><p>"You're tired, Rex," Kix nodded over to their sleepy huddle by the heater "I'll take over, go and get some rest soldier,"</p><p>"Is that an order?"</p><p>Kix just smiled "Doctor's orders, Captain, now go,"</p><p>Fives looked away when Rex started to trudge his way over to the group, glad that he was getting some rest too. He deserved it the most out of all of them, holding them altogether even as they had been splintered in trying to free their brothers. Fives had woken up half-wrapped up in a cocoon and stuck back to back with him. There must have been so many of them that the Spiders had been opting to wrap them up quickly in order to bring more of them down to the web for consumption. That wasn't a death he was going to forget witnessing for the rest of his life.</p><p>When he had woken up, he hadn't realized him and Rex were glued together, all he had heard were the muffled screams of his brothers. He didn't know who had been across from him, and he probably never would now. All he had seen was their mummified form standing upright, wiggling around like the rest of them. One of the spiders scuttled their way up to them, clambering up their body to crush them tightly to its underside, their fangs sinking in like pins to a crunchy cushion. Splotches of red burst out of the puncture wounds, staining the off-white silk red and splattering on the spider's hairy face before it scurried off. It had been too late for that poor brother, and Fives could only watch in morbid, disgusting fascination as the venom did its work. The screams and squirming slowly died down as the cocoon expanded to a formless blob, one of the spiders coming back and climbing up again. When its legs had gripped it again, there had been no protest, and the blob was squished between where it was clutched to the spider. It had sunk its fangs in again, Fives could only try to stomach his bile as the blob slowly deflated and the Spider's stomach expanded, until all that was left where his brother had been was a sad heap of bloodied silk. Rex had woken up as he had struggled, thankfully his Captain's hand was behind both of their backs, and he'd been able to reach for his knife to cut them both free. After that, it had been a bloody shootout as they tried to free their brothers with one covering the other as they sequentially went from silk figure to silk figure cutting and in some cases shooting.</p><p>"Fives…?" The ARC Trooper's attention was drawn back to Adorsha, now staring down at him with sleepy eyes.</p><p>"Hey there, General," Fives kept his voice quiet so as to not disturb the others "Sleep well?"</p><p>She looked at the blanket still wrapped around her, thumbing at it "Is this… yours?" she asked back. He nodded affirmatively, Adorsha blinked at him as her lips soured with guilt "Fives, you- you shouldn't have, you need this more than I do,"</p><p>"No, I don't," Fives disagreed "You were freezing and barely able to stand on your own two feet," his hands came to wrap themselves around her slender, exposed wrists from where her coat didn't quite meet her gloves, her hand splayed out over his chestplate for balance "You still are," he whispered, Adorsha looked down, having been caught in her lie.</p><p>"Besides," her eyes flicked back up to meet his gaze "I can think of worse views to wake up to than a beautiful Lady Tog laying on me,"</p><p>He resisted the urge to chuckle at her reaction, Fives had always prided himself on being a little more forward than some of his brothers, but Adorsha's blush was just too adorable.</p><p>"I should have you reprimanded for that comment," she grumbled, pouting and looking away from him.</p><p>"You would reprimand one of your best soldiers for speaking the truth to his General?" Fives asked, not even bothering to hide the playful tone in his voice, doubling down on his earlier comment.</p><p>Adorsha brought her attention back to Fives "Best," she moved her hand to boop his nose with her finger, making him go cross-eyed as he followed it for a moment "Is debatable,"</p><p>When he moved to sit up a little, Adorsha moved with him. Fives moved back to rest against the cave wall while Adorsha resettled herself beside him, moving the blanket between the two of them. "We should… both probably try to sleep a little more," Adorsha thought out loud "Even if it's only for a few minutes," she nuzzled into his warmth, but this time, Fives didn't move, or say anything. He was stiffer than durasteel, and suddenly gripped Adorsha tightly, suddenly wide awake "Fives?" she questioned, before following his gaze, her blood freezing over in her veins at the sight.</p><p>Kix had fallen asleep with his head in his hand. There was a spider. All eight of its hexagonal eyeballs boring down on Tup, looming over him in the deadly shadows from where it had no doubt spawned.</p><p>Adorsha saw it too, and she reached for her lightsaber, Fives beat her quickly to the punch by ripping one of his pistols from its holster and firing. One blaster bolt hit the spider, the creature screaming in retaliation before sinking its fangs into Tup, the trooper gasping awake and letting out a choked scream of pain just as the Spider grabbed him with two, prickly legs and dragged him down into the darkness. The screaming woke the whole group up, Rex scrambling to his feet with Fives and Adorsha closely behind him. Adorsha was the first to charge after Tup and the Spider, Rex yelling for Fives, Hardcase, Jesse and Dogma to follow him, the rest being told to stay behind and keep trying to get through to General Skywalker.</p><p>Tup's screams were easy enough to follow down the tunnels, Adorsha's lightsaber being their guiding light while the lights on everyone's weapons and helmets tried to keep a visual on Tup, even if he was a shadowy blur. The commotion caused more spiders to emerge from the black pores of the nest, where the rocks had been hollowed out to make more room for egg clusters, the eight legged guardians coming out on silk strings to protect their clutches. Blaster fire returned venom spat at them in globs and ate through some of their armor, sizzling with a chemical smell, mixing with the sweat as they chased after Tup.</p><p>They all dropped through a hole in the floor, none of them having seen it with their attention on the spiders and Tup. Fives was able to react quickly by using his grappling hook to dangle from the ceiling, catching Rex who fell through just a little after he had. Adorsha used the force to soften the landing, at least, somewhat, as the rest of them crashed to the webbed ground in a heap.</p><p>"Tup!" Rex called out, watching the spider with his brother still in hand scurry along the cave ceiling. He tried to fire a few shots but they just hit the cave wall from the odd angle.</p><p>At least, they all thought it was the cave wall until it started moving too. Blurs of bright colour captured the attention of their eyes, and soon the whole group was being stared down at by eight pairs of large, neon yellow eyes that lit up the darkness.</p><p>"That's… not good," Fives looked at the eyes then the cable, seeing its movement shake the whole cavern and that his hook was starting to come loose in the stone.</p><p>"Fives! Rex!" Adorsha called up to them, over the sounds of the giant creature moving, scraping against the stone "Drop! I've got you!" she threw her arms up and Fives let the trigger of his pistol go, both clones falling through the air and then hovering just feet off of the ground before being dropped onto the web with a sticky squelch. The others were already trying to get to their feet, the webbing beneath them seeming to be stronger than where it had been elsewhere in the cave. It clung to the fabric of their blacks and to Adorsha's coat as if a thousand hands the size of the ends of a needle were grasping them, fighting to hold them down.</p><p>The gargantuan creature in front of them let out a mighty screech that had Adorsha covering her montrals. Its hind body was raised up with its legs on the wall as it bent to fill up the room, fangs dripping with neon yellow fluid Adorsha could only estimate to be the size of a small child, its legs thicker than tree trunks and hairier than wookies helped the titanic Spider cling to the wall.</p><p>Adorsha flourished her lightsaber and the Clones took aim, their attention turning to Tup still captive in the spider's grip.</p><p>"Oh boy, this isn't going to be good," Rex grumbled, as Adorsha leaped into action, the Captain bellowed "OPEN FIRE!"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Why do I hear boss music? Remember if you wanna stay updated with this story to follow it to get notified as soon as the next chapter is out! Let me also know what you thought in the comments, and what you think will happen next chapter! Once again, huge thanks to all my people who have left kudos on the story too!</p><p>BTW, as a bonus to all my lovely readers on here, you guys will all be getting a little surprise side story very, very soon ;)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Hold on, General!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Torrent company's battle with the Matriarch concludes!</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Hello again my lovelies! This is yet another chapter which went through some major rewrites, most notably, the entire ending to this chapter at one point was scrapped. Nothing was really wrong with it, however you could tell I was in a bit of a funk when writing it, so I deleted what basically amounted to a page to start over. I'm glad I did now, as I was able to add in a few more plot elements, sprinkle in more fluff, and make it longer. I'm not sure what you guys think exactly of these longer chapters, I hope you're digging them though as I just want to give more content to you guys ultimately and bring as much gravitas to the story as possible. Honestly I was astonished with the outpouring of love the previous chapter received, I was having some really sucky days from long hours at work on little sleep and seeing your reviews and some of our silent readers speak for the first time made my day - heck it made my week! Once again, I hope you enjoy this longer chapter, and I do have a small announcement to make too - you guys will be getting a very special treat, very, very soon! Thanks again to all my regular commenters, my silent readers and kudos leavers, my newcomers, the people who bookmarked this story, and I hope you guys like the present I'll be sharing with you very, very soon!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Adorsha flew towards the Spider's fanged, hairy face matching its ferocious roar with her own, slamming her lightsaber down onto its armored chitin. One end of the blade sunk a hole into its hardened flesh, though it didn't so much as wound the creature as make it shake Adorsha off, throwing her back to where the rest of the Clones had gathered to fire on the spider.</p><p>"General!" She had no idea who said it but Hardcase was suddenly in front of her and Rex helped her up.</p><p>More spiders started scurrying down the walls as their colossal leader tapped its back legs in sequence on the walls, its markings gleaming in the darkness with its venom. Venom spewed forth from its gaping jaws, Rex ducked and rolled, but Jesse got splashed with Dogma. The toxic yellow fluids bubbled and smoked, eating away at their armor with the hunger of a thousand starving mouths, both troopers trying to wipe it off and getting the fingertips of their gloves corroded too.</p><p>"Kriff, what is this stuff?!" Dogma exclaimed over the rain of blaster bolts and the spiders scratching their way along the walls.</p><p>"You can find out when we kill this thing! Just keep shooting!" Hardcase made his point by taking the position at the forefront of the group.</p><p>"Concentrate fire on the leg holding Tup! Keep those spiders away from him!" Adorsha commanded. They switched tactics and moved into a new formation, the Jedi keeping the creature's attention at the front with Hardcase at the back keeping the smaller ones from reaching the group with Dogma. Rex, Jesse and Fives all took the center, aiming at the leg where Tup was being held. The trooper was still hanging limp inside the creature's grasp, fine, needle-like threads of its leg sticking to his armor. Even with all the matriarch's thrashing from the firefight ensuing below, Tup still didn't stir.</p><p>Going in for another assault, Adorsha darted to the left to avoid a torrent of spider silk spewed forth from the spider's spinnerets, before feinting to the right as a leg tried to squish her. Her lightsaber cleaved through the spider's tibia, another shriek echoed through the cave as the spider retaliated in pain, sweeping its secondary frontal legs outwards trying to shoo them away. Adorsha jumped and somersaulted, Dogma moved back alongside Jesse and Fives to avoid it, Hardcase was knocked sideways off of his feet and hit the ground hard. Despite being the furthest away, Rex ran over to help his brother up, covering him with his pistol from the smaller spiders while helping Hardcase up with his free arm. The Captain joined Hardcase at the back to keep them from being overrun.</p><p>Hearing the commotion behind her, Adorsha knew if they didn't kill the matriarch soon, they would all wind up in silk again or worse. Planting her feet firmly on the stone, it was difficult to reach out with the force when there was so much death and destruction around them. Nonetheless, she focused, trying to block out the skittering spiders and the gunfire, reaching out physically with her arms as she closed her eyes. Tup was alive, she could feel him through the force, whatever that spider had injected him with it was keeping him unconscious. The matriarch began to struggle against Adorsha's hold on it, trying to pull away only to be met with an invisible, unmatched strength which slammed it to the side, dropping Tup to brace itself against the wall.</p><p>"Tup!" Fives darted forward, sliding underneath the stunned spider to grab his brother, throwing his arm over his shoulder and scrambling to get him away. A leg came down on the duo like a hammer to two unruly nails, only to freeze mid-air. Fives looked over to see Adorsha with her hands outstretched in their direction.</p><p>"Go!" she yelled, her arms trembling with the exertion. Fives raced back with Tup to the middle of the group, dragging him away from the matriarch towards the back of the group.</p><p>Unable to take much more, Adorsha let out a breath as she dropped her arms, only for the leg to swing and smack her into the wall. Her hands wrapped around the massive width of the spider's leg to push it up and off of her as it held her there, her lightsaber clattering to the stone as it extinguished its blades. Adorsha bore her fangs and hissed at the matriarch, though it bore her little attention when Hardcase stepped up to the line. All she could hear over the Z-6 was the Clone's goading shouts of "You want some o' this?! Come get some! Come get some!"</p><p>Thrusting her hand out towards her lightsaber, the Jedi tried to summon her weapon back to her, however the unrelenting pressure of the Spider's leg kept her pinned. It was a war in her mind of pain and sensation versus the concentration she needed to use the force, the little hairs on the matriarch's arms stuck to and dug into her gloves, kissing the flesh it concealed underneath. The cylindrical hilt of her saber twitched against the stone. Adorsha's expression twisted into a blend of painful focus, trying to block out the blaster bolts, the scurrying smaller spiders along the walls, the matriarch trying to crush her, the battle cries of her men and the wails of sorrow the walls echoed from those having been devoured by the beasts that called the caves home.</p><p>"General!" A voice called out to her, and Adorsha's eyes snapped open, not realizing she had closed them until she saw Rex throwing her lightsaber to her. The force guided it through the air into her hand, igniting the dual aqua blue blades and slicing the leg that kept her pinned down. The matriarch screeched, stamping around in retaliation, spitting yellow venom that lit up the darkness with its neon glow as more spiders poured out from the holes in the walls, summoned by the screams to defend their Queen.</p><p>Their line of defense broke when the matriarch shot her webs, gluing Rex to the wall, Dogma to a stalagmite, meanwhile Jesse was blasted with another stream of venom that completely ate through the plastoid of his armor and was now dissolving the parts of his blacks it had touched, burning the skin beneath. The ARC-Trooper fought through the pain, running to stab Rex out of the webbing that bound him. He hacked away with his combat knife to try and get his Captain free when he heard a yelp, both men turning their heads in time to see Hardcase thrown across the cave. The Z-6 repeater he had been holding clattered to the floor, the trooper sliding backwards until he hit the back wall where the smaller spiders swarmed him. Hardcase thrashed and kicked at them, screaming out obscenities Adorsha couldn't hear over the chorus of woe that rose in the force as they were being overrun. The Jedi sprinted over to the cluster of spiders ripping and scratching at Hardcase, her lightsaber cleaving through one that was directly on top of him. Her hand plunged through the bisected spider, grabbing onto Hardcase's arm and pulling him out of the mound of spiders, the duo slicing and kicking at any which came close. Fives was crouched between where Tup remained unmoving on the ground and where Dogma remained glued. The ARC Trooper was the only thing now standing between the rest of his group and the matriarch, it was up to him to keep it busy until the others could get free.</p><p>Fives holstered one of his pistols "Fives?! Fives what are you doing?!" alarm soaked Dogma's pleas for answers seeing him take out his grappling gun.</p><p>"Trying something!" He called back just as Dogma pulled himself out of the webbing, the strands snapping as he clawed himself free "Protect Tup!"</p><p>Steel cabling shot out of the grappling gun, the hook claw widening and clamping into the stone under the spider's body. Fives took off running to the left, darting sharply when the matriarch went to squash him under her hairy leg. He nearly stumbled over his own feet when it missed him by such a narrow margin he could feel the firm, fine hairs brush the spaces between his armor. The steel cable still attached to the end of his gun began to scratch the stone beneath his boots as it moved with him, making a lap around the outside of the spider's legs.</p><p>A barrage of blaster bolts made Fives look back and he smiled at the sight, Hardcase was back on his feet, Adorsha at his side, Jesse stood guard next to Rex who was firing with only one of his pistols, Dogma on one knee taking aim at the smaller spiders, picking them off one by one before they could get too close for comfort. Adorsha made eye contact with Fives just as her lightsaber shredded through three spiders. She smiled and she nodded at him, the look of determination in her eye giving him wordless permission. She knew what he was trying to do.</p><p>Fives ran back out from underneath the Spider's legs, sliding to avoid a spew of more neon coloured venom, running to the others. Grabbing hold of the grappling gun with his other hand to steady himself, he pulled the trigger.</p><p>Immediately the steel cable began to retract, it flew up to wrap around the left legs of the spider, the beast trying to pull away as its legs were all suddenly tied together. Fives cried out in alarm as he was nearly lifted off of his feet by the sheer force of it but quickly found another set of arms wrapped around him to steady him. Glancing over his shoulder, Fives saw Adorsha using her own bodyweight in addition to his to keep the cable from pulling him forwards or the gun from flying out of his hands. The others seized the chance, unleashing a barrage of blaster bolts into the colossally sized spider's side. Fives felt Adorsha's embrace around him tighten as the spider shrieked and wailed, for a moment he thought he heard another voice, or that perhaps his commlink had gone haywire but he soon realized - it was Adorsha, whispering into his shoulder frantically.</p><p>"Just go down, just go down, just go down, just go down," Adorsha practically begged, Fives couldn't move his hands from the gun, if he did then their chance would slip them by to finally end this monster that had eaten his brothers. If he could have moved them though, he would have taken her hand to hope with her.</p><p>The hope both of them prayed for came undone as the titanic spider queen snapped the steel cable.</p><p>"No!" Fives cried out.</p><p>"Now what do we do?!" Dogma shouted "Captain, General, your orders?!"</p><p>Adorsha was silent as the weight of their situation began to settle on her shoulders as the Spider Queen rose to its full height, looming over them all with its fangs dripping as Hardcase's Z-6 stopped, the end of it white hot from overheating.</p><p>"Charges!" Rex sounded desperate "Does anyone have charges?! Explosives?! Detonators?!"</p><p>Jesse was the one to admit what they were all thinking as the Spiders began to close in "There's too many of them! Nothing we have will be enough! We're… we're going to die here!"</p><p>One by one their guns began to hiss, overused, needing to cool down for seconds they didn't have.</p><p>Adorsha looked up at the hole in the ceiling they had fallen through "Nobody is dying down here, not on my watch," she announced "Does anybody have a knife?" She asked "Fives, I'll need your cable,"</p><p>The ARC Trooper looked at her confused "General, its broken-"</p><p>"I know that, gimme," Adorsha insisted and he handed the broken piece of equipment over along with his knife. The Jedi grit her teeth to fight through the pain of the steel cord digging into her hand, she weaved it around the holes in the handle. Her gloves might have helped fight off the cold, however the cloth weave did nothing to safeguard against the small steel splinters that pierced through and nipped at her skin. She couldn't think about the pain now, or how the cable was tearing up her gloves, they needed to get out of the pit before they were overrun and eaten.</p><p>Static crackled through the open channel on all of their commlinks just as the Spiders started creeping closer, the matriarch shrieking to summon more of her spawn. It was so loud it nearly drowned out the voice coming through everyone's speakers, but the static was so out of place it snapped them all to attention.</p><p>"<em>Capt… Gen… on our…. Status?" </em>It was the voice of a Clone, at the moment none of them could recognize it <em>"Just… on!" </em>they didn't know what they were trying to say, despite the urgency of the message.</p><p>A growl sounded from Rex when he tried to raise his left arm, and ended up having to use his right to support his wrist to bring the commlink up on his gauntlet close enough for him to talk into "This is Captain Rex!" he had to shout over the gunfire and spiders "Come in?! Can anyone hear us?!"</p><p>"<em>Captain-! This…. Sarid… back… hold on!"</em></p><p>They all heard it this time, Fives turning his head to look back at Rex as his pistols ripped apart another smaller spider "I'm not sure how much longer we can last here, Captain!" he called out. They had formed a tight circle of defense around Tup, who was still out cold on the floor. Adorsha was still tying the steel rope around the knife trying to secure it, while the others just tried to maintain a defensive line. The Spiders were slowly figuring out however that their prey was getting tired, thus they were growing bolder. Silk, venom and a gloopy mix of the two was flung at the group, those unlucky enough to be hit had their armor and clothes eaten right through to the skin, or worse, their flesh sizzling as the venom ate away at the tender meat to turn it to liquid.</p><p>Adorsha managed to get the knife secured onto the end of the rope, and swung it around over her head, throwing it upwards towards the hole where they had dropped down from. It missed by a mile, and promptly disappeared into the sea of arachnids. Her plan of escape being washed away with their oncoming mass.</p><p>"Argh!" The Jedi was splashed with the gooey slop and reflexively dropped her lightsaber. The mixture bound her hands and her gloves were no match for the venom, the toxic substance greedily eating through the soft fabric, dissolving the steel splinters stuck in it from the rope. It was even less of a match for her lightsaber, her weapon being practically melting into a puddle of ooze on the floor "No!" she cried and dropped to her knees, tears springing to her eyes in panic "No no no no no!" her hands screamed in pain as she plunged them into the puddle, digging around until she finally, thankfully, found the thing she hoped the venom wouldn't devour.</p><p>"Adorsha get back!"</p><p>Fives shoved her back inside the tight circle, and shot the Spider who had managed to get the webbed venom onto her hands. She scrapped and pulled at the sticky substance, dragging her hands along the floor to get it off. The little globs that remained still burned, and Adorsha had to remove whatever was left of her gloves to get it all off, leaving her hands exposed to the cold. She shoved what she had searched for into her pocket, and got to her feet.</p><p>"Rex, any word from that signal again?!" Adorsha asked, trading places with Hardcase as she did so. The Matriarch's teeth wiggled, more venom drooling out of its mouth as it went to spit another torrent at them, only for it to fly up and hit the ceiling, sending more spiders running. Holding both of her arms out, Adorsha had to muster all of her concentration to keep the hold she had on the Spider's queen through the force, keeping it pinned on its back legs up against the wall.</p><p>"Still trying, General!" The Captain called out, before trying again to get back into contact with whoever had managed to reach them "This is Captain Rex- Trooper, if you are out there, respond! Respond!"</p><p>Jesse kicked away a spider, stomping on it before shooting its skull in "I don't think we can last much longer here, Sir!"</p><p>Dogma looked back at Tup, still unconscious. The private's stomach twisted seeing the veins beneath the tanned skin of his younger brother's face starting to become purple "I don't think Tup can hold out for much longer either!"</p><p>"We'll get him help!" Rex promised them "We'll get out of here! We just have to hold on… just a little… longer!" Rex let out a feral growl of pure pain when he tried to use his left arm to shoot again. He was hurt, Adorsha didn't know how bad but she could feel it through the force, along with the slow doom settling over the whole group. Part of her wanted to let that hope go too, resign herself and hope the end would be swift, but they had all heard that voice, and Rex was right, they just needed to hold on.</p><p>"Everyone! Listen to me!" Adorsha grit out through her teeth, her control starting to slip "Don't- Don't focus on what's in front of you! If we do that then we're as good as dead! We need to hold on just a little longer, they're coming for us, I know it!" she took a deep breath, feeling the sweat beading down her browline as she continued to hold the matriarch back "Don't think about the spiders, don't think about the mission, don't think about this horrible place!" she urged them all "Think about something else- anything else, think about your brothers waiting for you to come back! Think about the last rainfall on Kamino before you left!" the titanic spider screeched and flailed, sending more venom splashing around them as Adorsha forced it back again "Think about your Jedi! Think about each other! Hold onto that memory, hold it as tight as you're holding your weapons now, and fight for it!"</p><p>Through the exertion of the force she had to use against the spider, Adorsha could touch the minds of the clones, seeing brief flashes of what they were thinking about. Jesse was the closest, in his mind she could see Kix, the two of them sharing a moment when he had patched him up. Dogma was picturing him and his brothers at a game of Sabaac, all laughing together. Rex was thinking about Ahsoka Tano, and the last time they had seen each other before this mission, when they had shared a hug. Tup was dreaming, his subconscious mind wandering wildly with colours swirling behind his eyes. Hardcase was thinking about the last time he had been on Coruscant with everyone on shore leave, going with his brothers to see some sort of play, its dazzling lights hypnotizing him into silence. Fives was- Adorsha's breath got caught in her throat, she saw herself, or rather, her through his eyes, cuddled up beneath his blanket when they had first shared a bed together.</p><p>The shock of it made her strength falter, and the giant spider fell forward a little from where she had it pinned. She threw her hands back up, force pushing it back into the wall, but her concentration broke completely and the matriarch fell down, everyone stumbling from the shockwave.</p><p>The matriarch loomed over them all, more poisonous saliva brewing within her jaws, fusing it with her silk that she squished between her legs. There would be no running from this assault, no escape, no shield. Jesse, Dogma and Hardcase all fired on her to no avail.</p><p>"Trooper," Rex tried again into his commlink, the Spider Queen's leg scraping down the walls as it came closer "This is Captain Rex! We a medical evac immediately-"</p><p>Fives swallowed and holstered one pistol, using his free hand to take Adorsha's as they all stared down their deaths.</p><p>"<em>Captain! This is Sarid! We have a lock on your signal!"</em></p><p>Another voice came in over the comms to join their previous hope <em>"Everyone! Take cover now!"</em></p><p>None of them even had the time to move before a different roar the whole group was familiar with thundered through the cabin, two rockets whizzed through the air and hit the queen, exploding in her face. The matriarch screeched, seething in pain from the impact and the fire that caught onto the sticky hairs of her body, burning away the chitin armor their blasters had been pounding away at.</p><p>A figure soared through the smoke, landing on the Spider's body, and it reared up trying to shake them off. Two ropes slithered down from the ceiling, through the hole they had all fallen through. White armor marked with blue and lit by torches sailed down the ropes and onto the floor "General! Sir!" Sarid greeted the group.</p><p>"Rookie?" Rex blurted out, but Kix shoved past them both.</p><p>"Let me through! Let me through!" The medic went to Tup's side and took off his backpack, getting to work immediately. The little spiders began to flee back up the walls and into the holes from whence they had come, the light and explosions scaring them all "Just hold on brother, I've got you-"</p><p>The matriarch screamed again, throwing herself into the walls and tossing the one who had jumped on her off. She roared in defiance at the whole group, and Adorsha rushed forwards with Fives to help them up.</p><p>"General Skywalker, are you alright?" Fives asked, Anakin rubbing the back of his head from where he had hit the stone.</p><p>"I'm fine," Anakin got back up quickly with their help "Don't worry, we didn't come alone," he smirked as more clones came down the ropes. Two troopers heavily armed with tanks on their backs flanked the group, the large guns held in their hands connected with heavy tubing to their backs. Skywalker came to the forefront, and pointed at the matriarch "Light her up!" he ordered, and they both pulled their triggers. Twin bursts of flames bathed the room in orange light and agonizing screeches of pain, venom and web flung everywhere as the Queen tried to make her escape.</p><p>The flame troopers were close enough not to get hit, but Anakin wasn't so lucky "Eurgh, kriff what is this stuff?!" he asked as he tried to brush it all off of his robes.</p><p>"Venom, don't let it touch your skin Sir," Rex answered, the matriarch tried to rush them, but Anakin stopped it by throwing his lightsaber at it's seemingly thousand-eyed, burning face. His lightsaber cut clean through the melted armor, getting lodged in its brain, cleaving through its unsightly face. It collapsed, burning, its legs curling, onto its side, dead.</p><p>The whole group was silent for a while, each of them letting out a collective sigh of relief, having survived to fight another day.</p><p>"Skywalker," Adorsha came up to Anakin as more clones came down the ropes to see to the others "How did you find us this far underground?"</p><p>Anakin pointed over at Sarid, who was currently watching Kix work and following the Medic's orders "We picked up the signal from Kix, and your rookie there guided us down from the surface,"</p><p>That actually gave Adorsha pause, looking over at Sarid for a long moment. He had nearly been eaten by spiders, and to save them all from being devoured, he'd run through the caves up to the surface only to run back into the depths again.</p><p>"He's very brave," Adorsha smiled.</p><p>Meanwhile, Kix loaded up a needle and carefully had Sarid carefully remove Tup's thigh plate. Fives was crouched next to his younger brother, holding his hand.</p><p>"Alright, once I administer this, he will more than likely wake up very confused, I'll need you to hold him down so he doesn't try to attack on instinct," Kix instructed the ARC Trooper and the Private "Injecting in 3… 2… 1…"</p><p>Kix plunged the needle into Tup's thigh and he sprang up like a coiled spring, his eyes shooting open and gasping for air and coughing.</p><p>"Tup!" Fives came forward and Sarid backed off, Kix swiftly pulling the needle out and hiding it before he could see the size of it "Tup, are you alright?"</p><p>"I'm-" Tup coughed, throwing a hand over his mouth "I'm fine, Fives," Kix handed Fives his flask, he unscrewed it and gave it to Tup. The trooper drank up.</p><p>"Slow sips," Kix chided.</p><p>He put the flask down "What, what happened?" Tup asked, looking at the giant, dead spider.</p><p>"I'll tell you when we're out of this hellhole," Fives told him.</p><p>Kix sighed "This was all my fault," he confessed "I was supposed to keep you all safe when you were sleeping, but I fell asleep too…"</p><p>Fives put his hand on Kix's shoulder "Kix, we'd all be dead now if it weren't for you and the shiny," he reasoned "You saved us, brother, don't take that out on yourself, we were all tired,"</p><p>"I won't fail any of you again," Kix promised, just as Adorsha and Anakin walked by the group.</p><p>Anakin was looking down at what Adorsha had in her hands "I'm sorry about your lightsaber,"</p><p>She sighed "It's… its okay, I'll just- build another, I suppose," Adorsha couldn't particularly say she was looking forward to building one from scratch, although she thanked the force for being able to save the one thing inside of it that would have been irreplaceable to her "I'm just glad I was able to save my crystal,"</p><p>Opening her palm, she showed it to Anakin "That's a… long crystal," he commented "I thought double bladed lightsabers used two?" he asked.</p><p>"Not always, some use one, though they don't always look like this," Adorsha rotated it with her finger. Her crystal was a long, fine shard that went out slightly of either end of her hand, tapering into octagonal ends that were both slightly raised. She was glad she wouldn't have to go back to where she had found it, but she regretted not being able to truly save her weapon in their time of need.</p><p>"Hey," Anakin put a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her reverie "Are you alright? I won't lie, when we saw the city collapse, we all thought the worst,"</p><p>Both Jedi spun on their heels in alarm hearing a scream of pain, only to see everyone else looking at Rex. The Captain had his helmet off, and a medic was slowly rotating his arm, no doubt after having put it back in its socket.</p><p>Adorsha looked at Anakin "I'll live," she managed a smile, and he took his hand away "We can catch up later, I can tell you what happened during the debriefing, right now we need to get out of here,"</p><p>Anakin nodded affirmatively "Agreed."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Thank you guys again for reading, don't forget to tell me what you think in the comments, especially what you guys think of these longer chapters. Drop a kudos if you enjoyed, and bookmark/follow if you want regular updates. Again, I have something very, very special that will hopefully be up with the next chapter so until then, may the force be with you!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Will you have dinner with me, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After General Skywalker saved our heroes from certain death, everyone is slowly coming to terms with what happened on Ren Vhar...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Hey everyone, hope you're ready for what will be the longest chapter yet! No hairy ice spiders this time, I promise. Anyway, I have a little surprise for you guys buried in here somewhere towards the end of the story. Its my treat to you guys that I hope you enjoy! Thank you so much to my regular reviewers, my silent readers, my binge readers, and the people who have followed/favorited me. You guys allow me to take pride in my work, and I just hope I can continue to keep repaying you with the content you love!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Whenever they were aboard a ship or any sort of base, normally they were only allowed a certain amount of time in the Sonic showers to get clean before the jets automatically turned off. A slightly rude, non-verbal reminder telling them to get out. Fives noted however when the jets extended past their allotted time, thankfully most likely to compensate for the gunk they had been repeatedly sprayed in from the Spiders and over a days worth of grime. Jesse had ended up borrowing his loofah after practically destroying his own, the Lieutenant's armor and blacks had nearly been completely eaten aside from a few smaller pieces from the venom, and his skin remained an angry red as he scrubbed around his burns. Aside from Jesse, Dogma had also gotten the worst of it, having ended up bound in silk numerous times, thus he had taken the cubical furthest from the exit. Emerging from the showers with a towel around his waist, Fives stopped when he went past a mirror to look at his reflection. His hand went to his chin, examining the stubble that had sprung up to distort the shape of his beard. The length of it too was starting to make it grow unruly and unneat. Fives sighed realizing just how badly he needed to shave.</p><p>After toweling himself dry, and trying to brush his hair somewhat to heel, Fives had put on his shorts and returned to his bunk in the ARC quarters. As soon as he hit the bed, he could feel his whole body unwind, and he turned his cheek to lay his head on his pillow. He didn't want to get up, he could have slept for a week, were it not for the fact his stomach was growling at him and he knew he needed a shave. The armory had sent out a universal order of everyone's gear to be sent in for immediate examination and repair, or possibly to be re-issued. He had gotten splashed a few times, but nowhere near the extent the others had, he just hoped he would get all of his gear back soon…</p><p>Fives sighed and closed his eyes for just a moment, trying to imagine something to banish all thoughts of venom spitting ice spiders from his mind. His pillowcase felt cool against his cheek, the air conditioning having kept it crisp since he had been gone. The chill reminded him of that first night on Ren Vhar after that long march through the snow, the only thing that felt like it was missing was his General. Fives hadn't slept that well since the last time the 501st had visited Kamino, where he knew he was home. The bed they had shared had been no bigger than his bunk now, yet somehow, some way, Adorsha had been able to fit perfectly into his arms. Every time he closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep, whenever he would stare up at the ceiling, a part of his chest would ache just a little more. He hadn't been able to speak to her since they had arrived back, between debriefings, medical checks, equipment inventory and the steadily growing KIA and MIA count they were now deducing, Fives hadn't had the time. He guessed she didn't either, as Adorsha hadn't uttered a word to him. Perhaps she didn't want to, which was fine, he wouldn't blame her. Even he would admit his conduct was a little… forward. Not everyone liked it. Still, she could have just been busy, or even busier than him.</p><p>That didn't change the fact, however, that Fives missed her in his bed.</p><p>Before he could fall asleep, the ARC-Trooper willed himself to sit upright, rubbing at his eyes. He could sleep later, right now though his stomach sounded like a dying purgill and his face looked like he had a bush growing on it. Digging into his trunk at the foot of his bed, he pulled out and slipped into his greys. Rummaging around a little more, Fives smiled when he found what he was looking for. His good razor was still safe in the compartment where he kept his hygiene kit, so this would hopefully be an easy shave.</p><p>The door slid open and Fives looked up to see Jesse, his skin slightly damp, red welts all along his arms, legs and chest. Cocking an eyebrow, Fives got to his feet as the door slid shut "Kriff Jesse, you alright?" He asked in concern "Your red raw, how hard did you scrub?"</p><p>"Not hard enough," Jesse grumbled, going over to his bunk in the corner "I don't feel clean, I can still smell the gunk on me,"</p><p>Fives couldn't help but feel sorry for him "You and Dogma got the worst of it honestly, aside from Tup," he commented "You should visit him in the Medbay when you get the chance, I'm sure he'd appreciate it, smell and all," he watched Jesse get onto his knees to search his trunk for something.</p><p>Pulling out a small can of deodorizer, Jesse sprayed himself excessively "I guess I should be grateful this smell is all I walked away with, Kix is going to have to rub Rex's shoulder out every day before and after training,"</p><p>Frowning, Fives raised an eyebrow "I remember Kix putting his arm back in its socket, did he pull a muscle?" He did recall Rex attempting to lean on his arm at the last debriefing before he hissed and switched sides. The ARC Trooper's stomach squealed in desperation for sustenance, and now it was Jesse's turn to smile.</p><p>"Ask him yourself, brother, he told me he was going to the Mess Hall after we all hit the showers," Fives felt Jesse eyeing him up "You might want to shave first though," he suggested "Not sure why you even keep the hair, it's just be easier to shave the whole thing off,"</p><p>Fives folded his arms across his chest "Aw, jealous you can't grow a beard, Jesse?" He teased.</p><p>His fellow ARC rolled his eyes "We're literally the same person, Fives," he pointed out.</p><p>"No need to be jealous that I have a full head of hair and you don't, brother," Fives couldn't help but grin.</p><p>Jesse jabbed Fives' chest as he walked past. Fives just laughed as he came to the door that opened out into the communal hygiene facilities.</p><p>"That's entirely my choice and you know it Fives!" Jesse called out.</p><p>"Whatever you say, <em>vod</em>!"</p><p>"<em>Dikut</em>!"</p><p>Fives laughed again, shaking his head. Really, he loved his brother just as much as he did the others but Jesse's buttons were far too easy to push sometimes.</p><p>One shave, one of Jesse's towels thrown at him, and a brisk walk later Fives arrived at the Mess Hall. Generally it was always busy when you had to feed a ship this big and everyone had their rotations. Hence why, just like everyone else, he still had to wait his turn in order to get his food despite his stomach's best dying wamp-rat impression. Honestly, he had forgotten what a luxury a warm meal could be after living off of ration portions for so long. Although it wasn't anything special, just the steam that rose up from his mashed potatoes and meat when they put it down on his tray eased a part of Fives' mind he had trouble suppressing ever since he'd left Ren Vhar. Here he had warm food, a warm bed, and no spiders that would drag him away in the night. It wasn't Kamino, but the food made him feel just a little more at home.</p><p>Grabbing a few napkins when he came to the end of the lunch que, it wasn't hard to spot Rex's blonde hair in a sea of black and dark brown. Coric and Kano sat on either side of him, and Fives was able to slide into the bench across from his Captain, Sterling coming to sit next to him not too long after.</p><p>"Fives," Rex greeted, as did the others with either a nod or a wave.</p><p>"Hey there Rex," There typically weren't any ranks at the Mess Hall tables, just names, or numbers if you were new to the front. Fives' stomach growled, a frown settling over his brow as he put his hand over it "Sorry,"</p><p>"Nothing to be sorry for, brother," Sterling smiled, his tray was completely empty aside from the mashed potatoes he still had his spoon lodged into "Not sure about you but I wish we could have had something as soon as we came aboard,"</p><p>"I don't think they would have let us even if we tried," Fives responded as he tucked into his own meal "The guards were practically gagging when we came aboard, I could have sworn I heard Hawk dry heave when he was taking us back up,"</p><p>Kano chimed in after cutting up a piece of his meat "I wouldn't blame them if they ordered all the LA-AT's hosed down,"</p><p>"Aw, come on Kano we didn't smell that bad!" Coric defended.</p><p>After finishing his spoonful of potatoes, Fives countered Coric's claim "I don't know, I can't say I wouldn't blame them either, you should have seen Jesse when he got out of the showers-" Fives paused for a moment as the group stared blankly at him "Okay that didn't sound right, but he was red raw coming out, and even then I could still smell that tacky yellow stuff he got sprayed with,"</p><p>Rex failed to suppress a shudder "Spiders shouldn't be that size, they should stay small, or at least a decent size where they can be dealt with easily," the Captain's hand came up to rub his shoulder with a hiss.</p><p>It was time for Fives to get his answer from earlier "You pull something, brother?" he asked, the table stopping their meal to look at Rex. He didn't answer them right away, just rubbing at his shoulder until he moved his hand away and flexed his arm out.</p><p>"Yeah, in my shoulder, Kix looked me over when we all got checked out, I have this heating cream I'm supposed to put on it when I rub it but I think it's wearing off," Rex sighed, resigning himself to the ache.</p><p>The whole table was still looking at him.</p><p>"Rex, if you need one of us to check on you before lights out-" Fives began, and Rex shook his head.</p><p>"No, don't worry about me, I'll be fine," Fives gave him a look, wordlessly telling Rex he wasn't convinced, and he noticed his older brother's eyes softening "Look, if it gets worse, I'll check myself in to the Medbay," Rex looked around the table to see if the others approved "Alright?"</p><p>Everyone began to pick at their food, Coric being the first to eat out of all of them, and Rex joining Kano in slicing up another chunk of his meat "Honestly I'm wondering how General Tir is holding up after everything that happened, haven't seen her since we boarded the LAAT,"</p><p>Fives frowned "I thought she was with General Skywalker? Did she not get transferred back to Coruscant?" he questioned, figuring the Jedi would have called her back to the temple due to her lightsaber being turned into a puddle of fizzy goo.</p><p>"I'm not entirely sure what's going on, General Skywalker doesn't know anything, I reckon they think something else is out here, can't think of any other reason why we'd be pulled back from Planetside only to remain in the Atmosphere," What Rex was saying was pure speculation, though it made a few more frowns appear on the faces of the table's occupants "I don't think the General is doing to well," Rex added lowly, exchanging a look with the others "Hardcase told me about what happened when he found her, from what it sounded like… she had some sort of breakdown,"</p><p>Fives had dug his spoon back into his mashed potatoes, listening as Rex detailed what Hardcase had reported to him. He paused with his spoon still buried deep in the golden mush as Rex continued.</p><p>"I haven't been able to speak with her myself, but according to the lunch droids, she hasn't made any sort of appearance here in the Mess either, or even had anything ordered to her quarters," That was what the higher ranking officers and Jedi normally did if their work had to take priority. Even Fives knew Rex had done it sometimes when there were more papers on his desk than guns in the armory.</p><p>"You think she'd kick me out if I bought her some food?" Fives asked the table, looking around for opinions.</p><p>Sterling chimed in "Can't hurt, and I doubt she'd kick you out after you guys slept together," his smirk turned into a full blown laugh when at the horrified look on Fives' face, and when Rex began to choke on his food. Kano just gaped at Fives while Coric slid Rex a cup of water that he sipped to get his throat under control.</p><p>"You-" Rex coughed into the back of his hand "You did what?!"</p><p>"It wasn't like that! We didn't sleep with each other! I mean- we shared a bed, but that's different!" Fives tried to ignore his face getting redder as he stuttered over his words before scowling at Sterling "You're just jealous she picked me, though even if you were awake at the time I doubted she would've picked you Sterling with how loud you snore,"</p><p>"I don't snore," Sterling defended.</p><p>"Actually brother-" Kano began but Rex cut him off.</p><p>"Fives just- please take the General some food before I choke again," It wasn't meant to come off as an order, but Fives gladly took it as one, jumping on the opportunity to finally have an actual excuse to talk to Adorsha about what had happened between them on Ren Vhar.</p><p>He loaded up two cuts of meat onto a new tray after rejoining the line. The service droids gave him a look when he came up for what seemed to be seconds, though they obliged seeing the brother standing in line before Fives started to get antsy. Two guards stopped him at the doors to the mess hall seeing he was trying to take food out, however they backed off after exchanging a look once he explained why he was leaving with the tray of meat. More looks were thrown his way as Fives traversed the hallway to the turbolift, and found himself thankful nobody got in with him when he hit the button to the floor to the officer's quarters. It was quiet, everyone aside from the pencil pushers who normally never left their rooms were attending to their duties or training during these hours.</p><p>Fives passed General Skywalker's quarters first, and briefly wondered what he was up to, his mind coming to the conclusion he was probably up to whatever Adorsha had also been up to, or perhaps he had been gathering intelligence on what was happening planetside like Rex had suggested. He settled on that last one, to keep himself from being nosy, and resisted the urge to knock on the door. That wasn't his current mission. Currently that was to get his other General, who hadn't been eating if the rumors were true, to eat something.</p><p>General Tir's quarters were located at the end of the hall, when Fives arrived at her door he wrapped on it three times with his knuckles "General Tir!" he called out.</p><p>His brows settled into a deep frown when he didn't receive an answer, he knocked again "General Tir?! It's Fives, I… brought you some food,"</p><p>The door slowly slid open, but Adorsha wasn't at the door, meaning she had let him in remotely. Fives had never stepped foot into her quarters before, so this was a first for him. Scanning the room the walls were a deep shade of neutral blue, the steel furniture was styled to be a little more homely than the barracks, the space being generally on the larger side.</p><p>"General?" Fives questioned when his eyes finally landed on her back.</p><p>Placing the tray of food down on her desk, Fives tried to keep the noise down as he went over to Adorsha. She was sitting cross legged on the floor, her eyes were screwed shut, luscious lips pursed into a little pout as she held her hand out in front of her, concentrating deeply on the task at hand. The blue crystal she had saved from her lightsaber floated directly in front of her, various components of what looked to be bits of scrap rattled in the air as they twisted and tried to fit together. It looked like Adorsha was holding her breath too, until a gasp left her and her eyes snapped open, all the little bits and pieces clattering to the ground. She hissed a word Fives didn't understand before she gathered everything into a pile.</p><p>"Adorsha?" Fives asked, more softly this time "Are you alright?"</p><p>The Togruta turned her head to look over her shoulder, a smile hastily plastered over her quivering lips "Y-Yeah, I'm fine, more than fine! Great, just… great…" her voice choked as she teared up. Fives came over to kneel at her side just as sobs and shivers began to wrack her body.</p><p>"Hey, hey now, what's going on? Talk to me," Fives asked, his heart twisting seeing the tears start to roll down her cheeks.</p><p>"They're dead Fives, they're all dead, they're all dead- I was too defensive and I got them all killed-" Her words were blended into a long stream of consciousness that Adorsha just couldn't seem to stop "My lightsaber got melted and I can't make another one, I don't deserve to even have another one, Jedi are supposed to protect not- not-"</p><p>Fives pulled Adorsha into his arms as she choked out a strangled sob, she accepted his embrace, hiding her face in his neck. She trembled in his arms harder than when the ground beneath his feet shook from mortar fire he had to navigate through in the past.</p><p>"Is this about what happened in the tunnels?" Fives asked, although he had a feeling he already knew the answer.</p><p>"The tunnels… the city… so many people are dead… and I heard them all, Fives," Adorsha sniffed "I heard them all crying out in pain, calling to me, screaming their last breath out of their lungs until it died, it should have been me… not them,"</p><p>"You don't mean that," Fives couldn't let himself believe it either, or else he wouldn't have lasted a day in the 501st. Even at those early hours of the morning in his bunk he couldn't afford to believe that it should have been Heavy or Echo instead of him laying there "It wasn't your fault, and if it wasn't for you, for us all sticking together, we all would have died in those tunnels before General Skywalker ever had the chance to find us,"</p><p>Adorsha pulled back a little bit to look up at him "Then why can I still hear them? Every time I shut my eyes, I can hear them, it feels like I'm drowning Fives, I haven't slept a wink since we got back because all I feel is hands reaching out to me trying to pull me down into some dark, horrible place where I can't return," he looked at the pile on the floor when she did, her hands splayed on his broad chest "That's all I can picture when I try to make another lightsaber,"</p><p>His eyes scanned the little pile of scrap. He was able to recognize a few pieces of gun parts, ship components, and of course, her crystal. Fives had known about the kyber crystal, and obviously that a lightsaber wasn't made as his weapons were on an assembly line somewhere. However he didn't quite know exactly how the process worked, he guessed the force was involved, but to what extent? "Forgive me if I'm being bold, or if you can't answer this because its a secret, but… how do the Jedi make their lightsabers, Sir?" he asked hesitantly, hoping a change of topic would help her to take her mind away from that dark place Fives knew all too well.</p><p>Dainty lavender fingers spread out over his chest, the tips of Adorsha's fingers touching just over his heart. The steady drum compelled a tide of calm to wash over her, the soft fabric of his greys reminding her of where the both of them now sat. Adorsha wasn't exactly sure of how much knowledge she should divulge, it wasn't that she didn't trust Fives, she just didn't want to betray the Jedi more than she already had by failing the Republic on Ren Vhar.</p><p>"You're… When you're first building it, you need to find a kyber crystal, each one calls out to a different user, so its uniquely theirs, but I already have mine," Adorsha looked back down at the large shard where it sat on top the pile of scrap "So I can skip that step, thankfully," she sighed. Skywalker had given her a bit of a stern talk after she had plunged her hands into the toxic sludge in order to retrieve it, but Adorsha knew without it she would have been back to square one when it came to building. She didn't want to return to Ilum, knowing that another crystal might not have even made itself known to her, especially with a thousand ghosts haunting her every step. "You just make it out of what you can find really, when you're making it, you're supposed to sort of picture in your head what you want it to look like, sometimes it can take minutes, others hours, days even… I can't afford that, but I can't picture anything, not even my crystal, it's all darkness, screams and darkness,"</p><p>Fives took her eyes away from it the moment he took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, making her look at him "So stop trying, you can't make one right now, and it's making you worse for the wear, so stop, right now, you need some food, and a decent night's sleep," Fives glanced over at the tray he got her "Me and the boys were getting worried about you, s'why I brought you some food," he whispered to her "Forget about the lightsaber for now, don't even try,"</p><p>Adorsha snorted and sniffed "Funny," she managed a genuine, happy smile even if it was only for a moment "Master Yoda always tell us 'Do, or do not, there is no there is no try', didn't really think about that going both ways technically," Fives traced his finger up her jaw to hold her face in his hand, stopping just where her white markings began. A fat tear rolled down from her sad eyes that he swiftly wiped away with his thumb.</p><p>"You'll make one," Fives promised "I know you will," he wasn't a Jedi, but he knew she would.</p><p>"How do you know?" It felt like a silly question to Adorsha, he couldn't possibly have known. He wasn't a Jedi, he didn't have the force, let alone force foresight "What if I never make one ever again?"</p><p>"I know you'll make one because I believe you can," Fives smiled. His brows shot up in surprise when she suddenly had her arms wrapped around him in a hug again, for a moment, his arms remained where they had been before, until his body caught up with his mind and he hugged her in return.</p><p>They held onto each other for perhaps a little too long than what a Jedi and an ARC Trooper should have, both of them knew, yet neither pulled away all the same. They were alive, and although neither of them would have admitted it out loud, they were both content to be in each other's arms again.</p><p>"Thank you," Adorsha whispered to Fives, pulling back just in time to catch the adorable look of curiosity on his face "Thank you, for still believing in me," the sunshine had returned in her smile, breaking through the grey clouds of misery she had been mired in. He felt warm just knowing she was happy, that warmth slowly burning into heat when he realized he was staring. He looked down, though the smile didn't leave his face. Still, he had to remind himself, he had come here with a mission to complete.</p><p>"Will you have dinner with me, General?" he asked, pulling back to look at her again, though he still held onto her hands "I don't want your food getting cold," Fives shot a glance over his shoulder to where two trays of food still sat on her desk.</p><p>He helped her get back onto her feet again after Adorsha bent down to retrieve her kyber crystal, stuffing it into her pocket "If you don't have anywhere to be, Fives, I'd love to have dinner with you,"</p><p>Before his stomach could impress his General with a sickly bantha impression, Fives strode over to the desk to retrieve the two trays, handing Adorsha the meaty platter. The two of them talked about everything from the food to how his brothers were doing, even laughing jovially as they exchanged stories over the slicing of meat and spoonfuls of mashed potatoes. Their minds far away from the frozen hell below they had both endured together, both taking solace in the increasing <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/18Y4kn2-3hvwZ1ihNbhS4HW8ebe5HkA0t/view?usp=sharing">sanctuary</a> the other provided.</p><p>Fives knew it wasn't exactly a dinner date with his General, but he got the feeling his brothers would tease him about it all the same.</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): I hope this chapter was a nice break after the near death and ice spiders! Remember to tell me what you thought in the comments, drop a kudos if you enjoyed and follow/bookmark this story for regular updates, once again big thank you to Galactic Problems on tumblr for the commission!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Are you alright, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Adorsha starts to build her lightsaber while Tup recovers in the Medbay and Kix learns about Adorsha's past.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Kept you waiting, huh? Sorry this chapter took so long guys, I was about half way through this one about 2 weeks ago, but then I got sick for a week. Then after that, my mother took a turn for the worse all of a sudden and ended up in hospital. No, it wasn't the virus that shan't be named, but if I hadn't of called the ambulance when I had her kidneys would have failed. I don't have any other family here, so I basically ran the house for a week, and I guess I was experiencing what they call 'Carer's burnout' as every time I got home from the hospital I just sorta sat on the couch and processed everything. She's doing fine now, I've just sort of had to get used to things going back to normal after the craziness of the past 2 weeks. I did actually consider rewriting this chapter, but ultimately decided against it as there is some... juicy stuff here I don't think you guys would want to miss. I just wanna say thank you to all the people who have been following this story so far, those guests and users who have left Kudos, my silent readers, my binge readers who have made it up to this point who are absolute troopers, and to everyone leaving comments. I hope this chapter was worth the wait.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A long wind of measured focus filled Adorsha's lungs as she inhaled, holding it for one moment, two, three, then exhaling. Her eyes were closed, trying to picture how her lightsaber was before, and what it could be now. Twin blades, on opposite sides, that much was clear. What laid in between however remained a complete mystery. Her old lightsaber had a golden outer casing, she had melted down her medal she had won during the last lightsaber dueling tournament and added it to make it even more unique. It had been distinguished, just like she had been in her matches. She would have dared to have said that she even took a little pride in its appearance. Perhaps this was her punishment, her humbling, having it melted by something that scurried through the dark underground tunnels of Ren Vhar. A creature of vile vermin, destroying her precious lightsaber. Attachment was forbidden, her master had drilled that into her as much as her combat instructors had about her footing, yet she found herself yearning for her old lightsaber. It was lost, she knew it was, she had felt it slipping away in her hands turning to goo. The Knight just couldn't seem to make peace with that fact, and she grit her teeth, trying to purge those thoughts from her mind to focus on a single image of how the hilt could look. A different way, she mused, she needed to let go of the past. She had made it out alive, even if it had just been by the skin of her teeth. The parts she had gathered in the air rattled and clicked together stubbornly, unable, unwilling to connect. Just like her, she supposed, in what she had almost been sure would have been her final moments were it not for Skywalker. In those moments, what had she done? She had been unbalanced, she had been afraid, and instead of reaching out into the force…</p>
<p>She'd reached for a hand. <em>His </em>hand.</p>
<p>"Knock knock!" The obnoxious cheer sounded from the door with the sound of a hand rapping on it following. Adorsha's concentration was completely obliterated, her eyes snapping open at the noise. The spare parts that had been floating in the air clattered to the floor, the crystal once again landing on top. The banging continued, and after a moment of fearful contemplation of her conundrum in front of her, she shot a glare over her shoulder.</p>
<p>"It's your ship Skywalker! You know the override code if you want in so bad!" she snapped.</p>
<p>The knocking stopped. A minute later, the door slid open, Anakin stepping inside with a concerned look already deeply knitted into his brow.</p>
<p>"What's gotten into you since this morning?" He asked, and got his answer the second he looked down "Oh,"</p>
<p>Adorsha sighed, her shoulders slumping over "Yeah 'Oh'," she gathered up all the parts in her hand "I've been working on it since this morning, still no luck… I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever build another one at this point or if I need to meditate or something to find another crystal," setting all the parts back down on her desk, Anakin came to stand beside her.</p>
<p>"What makes you say that?" He asked, plucking a short, cylindrical tube with four holes cut perfectly parallel to each other from the pile. Adorsha watched him examine it in the light.</p>
<p>She swallowed, placing her hand on the back of her desk chair "Well… if I can't picture anything, it means somethings wrong, what I don't know, I mean they say the crystals choose us so by definition doesn't that mean it can reject us too?" Adorsha questioned, watching as Anakin picked up another part.</p>
<p>"I think if our crystals rejected us, you wouldn't just know it, I'd know it too, and everyone on this ship by proxy," His answer didn't satisfy Adorsha, instead she rolled her eyes, folding her arms at what he was implying.</p>
<p>"Skywalker, I don't think the crystal would explode if that's what you're implying," the Togruta deadpanned, leaning back against the desk.</p>
<p>"Hey, these things are volatile, you and I both know that," Anakin chided, waggling his finger as he selected a different part to inspect. "Could just be your parts are bad," he shrugged.</p>
<p>Now Adorsha just sneered at him "I'll have you know I did inspect each and every one of those parts when I was going through the armory, I wouldn't pick out trash for my lightsaber, there isn't a speck of rust or signs of oxygenation on any of those parts-"</p>
<p>"What if what your lightsaber wanted <em>was </em>garbage?" Anakin asked, putting the part down and looking at her with a look so serious Adorsha wanted to laugh.</p>
<p>"Ex...cuse me?" The female knight slowly blinked at her peer "Are you suggesting I throw myself into the trash compactor to find my lightsaber parts?!"</p>
<p>"You said the crystal was rejecting everything right?" Anakin probed.</p>
<p>"Yes, it doesn't feel-"</p>
<p>"And you already checked the armory for spare parts?"</p>
<p>"Well obviously I checked the-"</p>
<p>"And the supply inventory?"</p>
<p>"Why would I have <em>not </em>checked that?"</p>
<p>"Well then perhaps you might wanna check the trash compactor because you're missing a lense,"</p>
<p>"General Anakin Skywalker I am not checking the- wait…" Adorsha looked through the pile, sorted through it with the swiftness of an Acklay's claw swiping through the thick underbrush of Felucia. Then, she double checked it, unwilling to believe him or her eyes. It was on the third check that Adorsha realized he was right. She was missing a lense.</p>
<p>"You're… right," Adorsha admitted and Anakin smiled.</p>
<p>"You mind repeating that so I can send that audio to Master Kenobi when I get the chance?" Anakin teased "Seriously though, you might want to start checking other places of the ship you haven't already for a lense, I'd suggest maintenance first, there's got to be a spare lense for a holo you can take," it was a sound enough suggestion that it gave Adorsha a little hope. How could she have constructed a lightsaber if all the parts she needed weren't there? No wonder no vision had come to her!</p>
<p>"Y-Yeah, there has to be a lense somewhere," Adorsha agreed, saying it out loud made her believe it all the more "Is there anything else I'm missing?" she inquired, examining the pile again "Now I'm worried I might not have other things,"</p>
<p>The two knights both took a closer look at the little knick knacks she had gathered, sorting them into their respective potential functions then arranging it into three potential inner configurations. The vision in Adorsha's mind became a little more filled in ironically with each part she was made aware of by Anakin that she was missing. Wire connectors, power conduits, an activation stud, all were absent and all items she would have to scavenge aboard the ship. Preferably before she was called back to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant where she would undoubtedly have to face the judgement of her Master and the others. Her worries were so loud that Anakin picked up on them, commenting to her "Don't worry about them, let's just focus on the current mission at hand, isn't that what you always say?"</p>
<p>Adorsha nodded "I say that, to the men normally, but I suppose I could stand to take my own advice for a change," she took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the room "I think it would do me some good to get out of this place for a while too, I've been cooped up trying to figure this out it's been driving me mad,"</p>
<p>Anakin sympathetically laid his hand on Adorsha's shoulder "I could tell," they exchanged a friendly smile before turning their collective attention back to the pile "I'll let the others know you won't be reached for a while, I've got other things to do but I'll check back in with you in an hour or so," he informed her, the two Jedi turning to one another "Don't let me catch you back here either, I'll lock you out, I mean it!" he called as she walked past him to the door.</p>
<p>"You won't!" Adorsha promised both him, and herself that she wouldn't return until she had completed her mission. A conduit, twin connectors, and an activation stud. She could find those by herself, they shouldn't have been too hard to find, not on a ship of such size and scale like the one they were on.</p>
<p>Thirty minutes later after a visit to maintenance, Adorsha found herself clinging to that last shred of hope to find the pieces that she desperately required for her lightsaber. She had searched through all the boxes there, the two mass supply closets, asked the droids if they had known of any parts she could take and still nothing. Did the force even want her to have a lightsaber? She knew of a few Knights who seldom used them, preferring to meditate on the ways of the force. There were a few masters she had never even seen use a lightsaber, but she didn't dare doubt their rank. Lately she hadn't felt much like a Jedi herself, although she found Anakin Skywalker a breath of fresh air to be around, she truly did wonder about what her master would think of her actions. Worse, she knew he would be ashamed of her if he could sense her thoughts, for they betrayed her too.</p>
<p>Last night, she had bid Fives goodnight, thanking him politely for his company. She should have stopped there, shut the door, turned around, done something to put space between them. Instead, she had kissed his cheek. It had intended to be chaste, he smiled and bid her a goodnight in return, but she hadn't just kissed his cheek. She had put her palm to his neck, felt his pulse quicken beneath her fingertips, seen his eyes close as she laid her lavender lips on his bronzed flesh, inhaling the citrus of his aftershave and having to suppress the inner predator within her to continue down his neck and <em>claim</em>.</p>
<p>Adorsha's torment had only worsened when he left, finding herself yearning alone in her bed. She had arranged the pillows into a nest for herself for a sense of security, pathetically trying to emulate that first night on Ren Vhar only to awake alone and frightened, unable to soothe herself from the nightmares of giant spiders devouring her men. She had awoken that morning sobbing, alone, in her pillow fort. Ashamed of her failure, fearful of her growing attachment, and still without any semblance of what her lightsaber would look like. At least she knew now she was missing parts, but the Jedi was still waiting for inspiration to strike in the meantime.</p>
<p>The next place she had decided to check was the Medbay, its pristine white walls almost blinded her as she entered, a protocol droid walking out as she came inside. It smelled of bacta and disinfectant agents, a testament to the condition the wing had to be kept in due to its daily operations. The Togruta felt her stomach twist seeing the pain some of her men were in, their feelings all drawing into a collective ache in the force. In the first bed she walked past was a clone hooked up to a bacta tank, the pad being on his face, Adorsha concluding it was probably some kind of burn. At his bedside was another clone, though he was dressed in civilian greys rather than armor. Guessing he was a medic, Adorsha wandered over to ask how the state of the Medbay was when they heard her approach. They turned and saluted, she paused in surprise.</p>
<p>"Sarid?"</p>
<p>"Sir," he answered, still with his hand up.</p>
<p>"At ease," he put his hand down and she came closer to talk to him. Adorsha couldn't hide the pleasant surprise and relief in her voice at seeing him both in one piece and doing relatively okay from what she could see "What are you doing here? You're not a medic, where's your armor?"</p>
<p>"Just volunteering to help, Sir," Sarid answered, looking down to his brother still laying on the bed "Get some sleep, use this button on the bed to call for help if you need anything else brother," he instructed, before taking Adorsha off to the side of the room with him to talk privately "Kix told me they were having trouble down here handling all the injured, so I thought I'd help," he elaborated further "As for my armor…" the young Clone frowned in concern "I was told to turn it in, Captain's orders, I hope I'm not in any trouble,"</p>
<p>Adorsha smiled and put her hand on his shoulder "You're not in any trouble, Sarid," she promised him. She had an idea of what Rex was doing if he was asked to turn in his armor without explanation "What you did out there was noble, and what you're doing in here even more so, you demonstrated bravery that everyone in the Grand Army of the Republic should aspire to, if it weren't for you, a lot more of us would be dead by now,"</p>
<p>"Or worse," Sarid cringed, shuddering. Adorsha could hear his thoughts, a flash of fangs and spider silk that she had to quickly banish from her head.</p>
<p>"Still, you're not in any trouble, I can promise you that," his confusion nearly earned a giggle from her, his eyes widened like a curious puppy begging for the knowledge his Jedi had "You're being promoted, with valor,"</p>
<p>His reaction reminded her of a youngling getting their first training saber "S-Sir, I- thank you! I don't really know what to say," Sarid was flabbergasted, but Adorsha shushed him, looking around with caution.</p>
<p>"You didn't get that information from me," It wasn't official yet, so she couldn't really let him go around talking about his promotion just yet "Just remember to report to your Captain's Office when you're summoned,"</p>
<p>"Yes sir, of course sir," Sarid nodded frantically in joy "You won't hear a word from me, this conversation? It never happened,"</p>
<p>"Good," Adorsha looked back over to where the medical beds were when a trooper was moved to a new bed, making room for another who looked to have just been wheeled out of surgery "I won't keep you, not when your brothers need you,"</p>
<p>"We need you too, Sir," Sarid told her, although she didn't believe him "A Jedi's presence might calm some of the others down, I've noticed you uh- have that effect on us,"</p>
<p>Adorsha shook her head "You only need to trust in your brothers to lead you, Sarid, you don't need a Jedi, only each other," she glanced back over to the small group gathered around the new patient "Besides, I believe your help would be greatly appreciated over there,"</p>
<p>"I… guess it would, Sir," The rookie agreed, though he still sounded concerned "If you've got the time though, Tup woke up a little while ago, think the anti-venom flushed whatever that thing put in him all out of his system now," he suggested "He's in bed number thirteen,"</p>
<p>Curtly nodding, Adorsha thanked Sarid and watched him go over to the group. She had a feeling that he would make a great fit for the 501st if Rex chose to bring him into the fold, otherwise she would be watching his career with great interest regardless. Sarid had displayed exemplary behavior and excelled since she had unbound him from his cocoon, and was curious about what he would choose to do next. He had managed to run through the entire caving system they had fallen into, find the surface, and direct a flying unit to land before leading the rescue party back to their location. Adorsha reckoned if that wasn't scout trooper material, she didn't know what would be. Under Rex's watchful eye and leadership, she was sure his potential would fully be realized.</p>
<p>Her boots padded across the durasteel floors, being mindful of a mousedroid that sped past her feet as Adorsha made her way back through the rows of beds. Some were empty, or were being rearranged or cleaned of their bloody sheets. A fog cloud of guilt began to mist her mind and her eyes seeing the empty beds splattered with red, all Adorsha could do was look away, and continue onward. Finally she reached bed thirteen, and true to Sarid's words, Tup was laying there with a wet flannel folded neatly over his forehead. His armor was gone, along with his blacks, the sheen of his sweat turned his natural scent slightly salty, his hospital sheet practically glued to his stomach and lower half of his body.</p>
<p>"Tup?" Adorsha kept her voice soft, coming to the Private's bedside. His eyes opened into thin slits, his head rolling to the side as she came closer "Hey there soldier," she smiled kindly "How are you feeling?"</p>
<p>"Everything hurts…" Tup whined, closing his eyes as his expression soured into a pained frown "Don't feel like I'm getting any better…" he mumbled "Feel so hot…"</p>
<p>She hated seeing him like this, and the shame of knowing she was the reason he was like this burned her throat as she squeaked her next words "Your body is burning out the venom," Adorsha tried to keep up her smile "That's a good thing, means you'll be better soon,"</p>
<p>"Fives… he said I looked better than Jesse," Tup managed to smile at the image "Said he and Dogma got slimed real bad,"</p>
<p>'Slimed' wouldn't have been the word she would have used, but Adorsha wouldn't take that away from Tup when he needed to stay upbeat "Yeah, yeah they did, have your brothers been visiting you then?"</p>
<p>"When they can," Tup wheezed a little and laid back on his pillow weakly "Fives visited me after we got back… Kix has been taking care of me, Hardcase came by earlier, cheered me up a bit, left me his holo," he pointed over to the little disc laying next to him on the bed without moving his arm.</p>
<p>Tilting her head, Adorsha asked with a smile "Nothing that will get you in trouble I hope?" she wasn't oblivious to what materials tended to circulate around the barracks. Tup shook his head.</p>
<p>"No… No it's some kind of documentary on fish, not even sure why he gave it to me, I don't like fish, they look weird," The trooper mumbled and Adorsha giggled at the look of confusion that came over him as he spoke those words out loud, almost as if he was voicing his realization in regard to the question for the first time. Tup blinked up at Adorsha slowly, and slurred out "Heh, gonna tell Fives I made you laugh first,"</p>
<p>The Jedi stopped and her cheeks flushed blue "I'm- sorry?" she asked to excuse herself and for him to repeat what he just said.</p>
<p>"Oh, s'nothing, Fives came in here yesterday worried about you, I bet him I could make you laugh first, just to wind him up a bit, prove I can still keep up with everyone else, m'not slow…" Tup yawned "Think whatever they gave me is starting to kick in... "</p>
<p>Frowning, Adorsha didn't want to press too hard when he was still sick, but she was still curious "What exactly did you two say about me?" nothing bad she hoped…</p>
<p>"Said he was worried about you, said he couldn't stop thinking about that night… I told him I think he's sweet on you," Tup shifted in his sticky bedsheets.</p>
<p>"What did he say to that?" Adorsha didn't know if she was ready for that answer, her stomach was tying itself in a knot that she had been trying to keep in check all day long.</p>
<p>"He denied it," Tup barked out a laugh and shook his head "He's always been a horrible liar,"</p>
<p>Adorsha didn't quite know how to feel about that, on the one hand she was partially thankful that her newfound feelings weren't one sided. That, in itself, presented a problem though. The Jedi weren't supposed to form attachments, they weren't allowed to have connections like what she had dreamed about and yearned for last night. It was quite possible that those weren't her feelings at all, nor the yearning, and it all belonged to Fives. She always had been very open to the emotions of others, it's why the disaster of the Ren Vhar Citadel had hit her so hard. Her heart, however, begged to differ. It ached at her attempt to deceive herself by writing off the nights she had spent in the ARC Trooper's arms as nothing. It hadn't felt like nothing, perhaps the first night but after that? When they had been in the Cave? When he'd held her hand facing venom coated fangs and surrounded? Last night when she had cried on his shoulder and he'd been there for her? Sure, she had kissed him playfully on the cheek and forehead, but she wasn't going to pretend the thought of his lips on hers hadn't crossed her mind either…</p>
<p>"General?" A new voice asked to her left, and Adorsha saw Kix walking over to her and Tup with a data pad in his hands "Why are you in the Medbay? Feeling off, sir?" The medic asked kindly.</p>
<p>"Oh, just visiting," Adorsha smiled "I think Tup is falling asleep," she whispered, watching the younger trooper struggle to stay awake. Kix guided her away, closing the curtain around Tup's bed to give him some privacy from the rest of the ward as he dozed off.</p>
<p>When they were in relative privacy again, Kix sighed "General, I feel I owe you and the Captain an apology, I fell asleep on lookout, I-I just wanted to make sure Rex got some rest, he wasn't doing nearly as well as he made out he was doing," he explained. He swallowed "It was my failure that put everyone in danger-"</p>
<p>"Kix," Adorsha halted him in his tracks with a stern tone "If you and Sarid hadn't been there to guide General Skywalker down, we all would have died down there," his look of disappointment made Adorsha breathe in deeply "There's nothing to forgive, I think… we all need to learn to let go, just a bit," and she realized that one of these days she needed to take her own advice too. Still, she had come into the medical bay with a specific purpose, and nobody knew the medbay better than Kix when it came to her soldiers "If you want to make it up to me though, I could use your help," she informed him.</p>
<p>"I'll help in any way I can, sir," Kix answered firmly.</p>
<p>"Good," Adorsha sighed, she had begun to loathe talking about it, but without her lightsaber she wasn't exactly the spitting image of what a Jedi should look like "My lightsaber was destroyed in the fight, I'm trying to find the parts for a new one, I thought you'd know where to find a lense, maybe some wire connectors…"</p>
<p>Turning on his heel, Kix waved for her to follow him "Supply closet is through here, I'll see what I can find, we should have some glass slides that could double as a lense," he informed her as they stopped outside a blue door. It slid open automatically once they got near, Kix stepped in and the light flickered on. Glass clinked and metal clanked as he searched the shelves.</p>
<p>"How is Rex's shoulder?" Adorsha asked curiously "I'm still amazed he only dislocated it and didn't break it,"</p>
<p>Kix sighed "Honestly? He's recovering, but a dislocated shoulder isn't something you just bounce back from like that, I told him he will probably still be feeling pain for another day or two if he continues with the bacta, if he skips it, then a week or two, I try to rub it if becomes too much after morning inspection," more glass clinked against his gloved fingers as Ki rifled through various test tube vials in boxes. Adorsha tried to peer past his shoulder to see what all the noise was for, when Kix asked "How have you been doing, General? You didn't report any injuries other than your hands, have you spoken to anyone about what happened?"</p>
<p>"Yeah… Fives came by last night," Adorsha reluctantly confessed "We talked," and she'd ended up crying on his shoulder before having dinner with him "I still haven't spoken to the Jedi about my lightsaber, only person I've told about that is General Skywalker, I was hoping I wouldn't have to tell them so I could stay off of Coruscant for a little while longer, but I've been thinking that perhaps it's time to talk to my old Master," she folded her arms and looked over her shoulder to see if there was anyone coming. Not that they were being secretive, she just didn't want to disrupt operations more than she already had.</p>
<p>Kix took note of the tone in her voice "You don't sound too excited about that, Sir," he pointed out, moving a box to the back of the shelf, and bringing another forward.</p>
<p>Adorsha sighed "I would contact him more often, but… he's not the man he once was," she swallowed nervously just thinking about it "This war- it's changed a lot of people, we don't really see eye to eye on things a lot anymore ever since it began," she had changed a lot too. Adorsha liked to think it was for the better, after all, it was because of her bravery in battle she had gained the skills she needed to truly excel at her Knighthood trials and become a fully fledged Jedi. Sadly she couldn't say the same for her master, in fact, she would advocate the exact opposite. The war had cut his fuse in half, made him, in her eyes, reckless, bitter, and cold.</p>
<p>Pulling back from the shelf, Kix held a small lense of a microscope between his thumb and forefinger "Here, this should hopefully suffice," he smiled in triumph as he handed it over to Adorsha "You might wanna check maintenance again or even the gun range for other parts, but that's probably the best thing we have down here for a lense,"</p>
<p>He handed it over and Adorsha examined it in the light, the two of them stepping out into the hallway again "This is just what I needed," she told him, smiling in gratitude at the medic "Thank you, Kix, you've been a big help,"</p>
<p>"No problem sir, happy to do my duty," It might have been rehearsed, but it sounded genuine coming from Kix. Just as Adorsha turned to make her way out, Kix couldn't help but ask one more question "Sir, if I may ask- who… was your master?" he asked, hoping she would end his pondering.</p>
<p>Adorsha hesitated for a moment.</p>
<p>"Sir?" Kix tilted his head, noticing she had gone stiff.</p>
<p>"If you must know, I was General Krell's apprentice."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Dun dun duuuunnnnnn. Lol, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, let me know your thoughts in the comments and check back for updates!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Why, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>There's a clash in the stars as the battle rages on for Ren Vhar...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Guess whose back? Back again? I know its been a while but trust me, this has probably been my favorite chapter to write so far just because of how much of an emotional roller-coaster it was for me writing it. A lot of you freaked out at the uh, little twist there at the ending to last chapter, but I thought what way to make this fluffy little romance even more dramatic than have sweet Adorsha be the apprentice of General Krell? I think I made it pretty clear but this is pre-Umbara, and yes I do have something little for that down the line but for now, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Thanks to all of the new people viewing my story or have binge read up to this point, seriously you guys would probably qualify to be either ARC Troopers or Republic Commandos by now with your endurance, my lovely regulars who make my day whenever I see your reactions in the comments, the ever elusive but always appreciated silent readers that drop kudos, and to everyone who has followed this story so far!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A lens from Kix in the medbay, wires from maintenance, another cylinder from hangar bay 4. Adordsha had everything she needed now to construct her new lightsaber, all she needed to do was put it together. All of the parts were laid out on the floor of her quarters where she sat cross legged on the floor. Her holodisk on the edge of her desk still beckoned to her, Anakin had been a huge help in her lightsaber's construction, but he wasn't the one who had helped with her original lightsaber's construction.</p>
<p>That had been Master Krell.</p>
<p>Sighing, Adorsha scooted back using her heels to put her back against her bed, looking over at the holodisk. The last time she and Master Krell had spoken on good terms had been on Coruscant, just before he left for the Outer-rim with the 282nd, her original assigned Legion before her Knighthood.</p>
<p>"<em>I wish I could go with you," Her voice was quivering as she blinked up at her Master "I knew it was bound to happen but- but…"</em></p>
<p>"<em>You didn't want it to, I know, I didn't want it to either," Krell sighed, unable to meet the eyes of his concerned apprentice, and trying to think of an alternative way for her to see this parting. "Think of it like this, Adorsha, when I return, you and I will have two things to celebrate, your knighthood, and another victory for the Republic,"</em></p>
<p>"<em>I wanted you to be the one to knight me," Adorsha whimpered, and that made Krell's heart crack just a little. Perhaps if he consulted the other Masters, they could push back her ceremony so he could be the one to knight her. Although in that regard he didn't really see them doing it considering there was a war going on.</em></p>
<p>"<em>The next time I see you, will be the first time you will be a Jedi Knight, of that I am confident, Adorsha," Krell tilted her chin up with his hand "I know you won't let me down," his serious tone gave way to one of a master proud of his pupil.</em></p>
<p>She hadn't let him down. Instead, it had just all been downhill from there. Adorsha didn't agree with the war, but Krell did. She wanted to bring Count Dooku, Nute Gunray, Wat Tambor and the other War Lords of the Separatists brought to justice, her Master seemed to prioritize that higher objective with little regard to the immediate ones. It blinded him to the civilians they were meant to protect, to the casualties of his men, and the damage of the system's environment. To Master Krell, the ends sometimes justified the means, as he had taught her as a Padawan. However the more she had seen and been in command of her own men, gone on her own missions, studied the force and more importantly - since her knighthood, Adorsha no longer believed that to be true. Victory always came at a cost, whatever happened between the start of that battle, or even the beginning of the war, could conflict in what one truly believed in. Master Krell's entire mentality depended upon whether or not things are always evil in every situation, or whether they depend on circumstances and intention to make them evil. If some things are evil regardless of the good end, then the end would not justify the means. But if evil depends on many factors, then some ends would be worth the evil means taken to get there. That, in essence, was the philosophy her Master swore by. A morality she could no longer justify, not after everything she had seen or done.</p>
<p>Perhaps, that was why she wasn't his student anymore. She hadn't just achieved a balance with the force, she had achieved it in herself too. Much like the force itself however, her balance too ebbed and flowed. A day or two ago, she had been a mess, and had since found her solace. Where she had found it though, was what continued to trouble her. For the time being though, she just needed to focus on the immediate, on what was in front of her.</p>
<p>She was going to build her lightsaber.</p>
<p>Taking a deep breath, she looked away from the holo and back to the pile of parts on the floor, her crystal sitting in the middle. What greeted her in the darkness was a thousand red eyes, all looking at her, fangs chattering together as venom dripped down onto the space in the darkness in front to burn through it. Then, the eyes all snapped closed. She wasn't in the caves anymore, she was alive, she'd gotten them through and they had been found.</p>
<p>A tube slid underneath a cylindrical casing. Wires wove around and linked to the beginning and the end.</p>
<p>The next thing she saw was a vision her crystal showed her. She recognized her surroundings, Adorsha was back home, on Shili. The sky was pitch black from the rain that pattered onto her leathers. Thunder warning the arrival of two lightning bolts, illuminating the meadow in front of her and the pedestal that sat among ruins. It appeared to be some kind of temple, one Adorsha had certainly never seen, but somehow she knew. Her boots crunched and squeaked the wet grass under her foot as she approached, the object placed on the pedestal becoming more and more familiar to her.</p>
<p>The crystal disappeared into the casing, and the flares began to twist down on opposite sides.</p>
<p>Curled around the object were silvery beads that reflected in the light, two flat, rectangular shapes clinking together almost like a charm in the wind. It seemed illogical how it hadn't been blown away, yet it seemed to always be attached no matter how hard the wind or the rain blew it. She reached for the object.</p>
<p>Adorsha raised her arm out, extending her palm, and felt a weight settle in her hand. Her fingers curled around it, a faint clicking noise she could barely hear accompanying it. Just as she gripped the object in front of her in her dream and brought it close to examine, she could have sworn she heard a voice whisper in the wind.</p>
<p>"<em>I will always be with you, Adorsha."</em></p>
<p>Oceanic eyes opened, an epiphany flowing through her from her vision, her thumb flicking the little switch near where the rest of her palm currently encircled the object in her hand. Twin blades of teal ignited from opposite sides of her new lightsaber, illuminating the dark room with its light. Adorsha smiled, her heart soaring in triumph at the sight, and tears of joy springing to her eyes. Perhaps she wasn't so useless after all, there was still a little bit of Jedi left in her to give.</p>
<p>Just as quickly as she had ignited it, she extinguished the blade after the whole ship rumbled. Sirens began to roar, as did the voices on the intercom speakers.</p>
<p>"All hands! Man your battle stations! This is not a drill! Repeat: This is not a drill!"</p>
<p>An urgent communication came through Adorsha's commlink, and she opened the channel. The sirens only got louder as the ship quivered again.</p>
<p>"<em>Sir! You're needed on the Bridge Immediately! A Separatist fleet just dropped from hyperspace!"</em></p>
<p>Rising to her feet, Adorsha clipped her lightsaber onto her belt as she began to book it out of her room and down the hallways towards the elevators. Marines and pilots ran towards the hangar bays and to the defensive decks that housed the giant canons on the ships under and top sides. Droids whizzed past, and Adorsha nearly collided with a small astromech as it clipped her leg on the way to its destination.</p>
<p>The turbolift shot her upwards through the decks of the ship until the doors opened once more and the Togruta emerged onto the Bridge. She strode out with her newly restored confidence, her eyes briefly drawn to the viewport as enemy droid ships spewed out into space. Looking around the bridge, she noted the absence of her fellow General, leaving her the highest ranking in the room.</p>
<p>"Sir!" One of the officers greeted her "An enemy fleet just dropped out of hyperspace a few moments ago from the east, scanners indicate we're looking at threelucrehulk-class Battleships, a dreadnought and a battlesphere with a supply ship,"</p>
<p>The white markings on Adorsha's face shifted as she frowned "Where's General Skywalker?" she asked.</p>
<p>"He's commanding in the field with the scrambled fighters Sir," The whole ship wobbled underneath their feat as the dreadnought focused all their firepower on them "He's leading the bombing run on the enemy supply ship to try and cut off their reinforcements, our own are on the way,"</p>
<p>Adorsha's attention turned to the holomap of the battlefield "If we're to stand a chance, we need to take out that enemy dreadnought and take the heat off of General Skywalker, move us thirty degrees starboard into attack formation, what's the status of our shields?"</p>
<p>"Shield's are currently at ninety percent sir!" One of the bridge officers called back to her.</p>
<p>"Lower them to twenty percent," Adorsha ordered "Lure them towards us," a chorus of orders rang out across the bridge as it was relayed, some of the Clones looking more nervous than others. It was a risky move, they all knew it. They wouldn't be able to sustain fire for long from that dreadnought having the shields so low, but it would give Skywalker's Y-Wing detachment a critical window that she knew he would take advantage of.</p>
<p>"Standy, lowering shields, 3… 2… 1…"</p>
<p>The ship began to rattle and shake from blaster fire as the shields were taken down to a reduced capacity. A particularly hard quake made Adorsha brace herself on the table in front of her, the holomap flickering along with the lights. Smaller, gray coloured enemy fighter craft whizzed by the Bridge viewport, and on the holomap a cluster of red dots became highlighted over their ship.</p>
<p>"Sir! Enemy boarding crafts inbound!" An officer called out, and Adorsha raised her finger to switch on her commlink.</p>
<p>"Rex, you there?" Adorsha asked.</p>
<p>"<em>I hear you, General,"</em> The Captain reported, just as the cluster of red began to disperse to be over different areas of the ship.</p>
<p>"We've got enemy boarding parties inbound, have your men set up defensive lines in sectors 4, 5, 8, and 12 and prepare to intercept," Adorsha ordered, just as one of the officers on the bridge called out that the shields had fallen to ten percent. An explosion rumbled the ship as the droid supply ship went up in flames, the vacuum of space quickly snuffing it out just as quickly as it had begun "Raise the shields! Full power!"</p>
<p>The shields were raised back up and blaster fire became null for the attacking ships, several of them being destroyed by turrets and canons for getting too close. However the ship rocked a little from side to side as the boarding pods slammed into the durasteel armor of the ship's hull, drilling into the ship with their large drill bits that expanded and secured the pods to the ship. The hologram of the ship began to blink red at their engines, before Adorsha could even ask the question, a Bridge Captain called out "Fifth enemy boarding party has been detected near the engines, General!" Pressing buttons on the computer that currently displayed the holomap, she relayed that information to Captain Rex, knowing he would see the risk and divide his men accordingly to deal with the threat.</p>
<p>"Uh… sir? You might want to look at this…" One of the ship's security staff came up to her and brought up a video feed of the corridor near the engine room. Adorsha's cold breath froze the blood in her veins, seeing what, or more precisely, who, was heading towards the engine room. She may as well have sent lambs to the slaughter, no matter who Rex had sent to deal with it. Taking a deep breath, Adorsha centered herself, she could not allow her emotions to get the better of her now.</p>
<p>Taking her newly built lightsaber off of her belt, Adorsha ran out of the Bridge "Keep me informed! Defer to General Skywalker if you must!" she yelled, pushing her legs as fast as they could carry her to the turbo lift. Her heart felt like a dead weight repeatedly thudding in her chest as she hit the button to carry her down to the ship's engines. Every second she wasn't down there, she was putting another life on the line, throwing them to an enemy that had no mercy. Every second, was another one of her failures. Adorsha's clammy palm clenched around her lightsaber, fortifying herself for the battle ahead. The calm whirring noise of the turbo lift reminding her of the distant rolling thunder of an incoming storm.</p>
<p>When the doors finally opened after the elevator ground to a halt, she didn't so much as run out as she did launch herself, sprinting down the hallway to the catwalk over turbines for the engines. The only thing louder than the turbines was the war drum inside of her heart, beating down every time her foot touched the metal grate of the catwalk. The ship trembled again, Adorsha's hand shot out to brace herself on the railing that ran parallel to the grates on either side. The sensors of the blast doors picked up her presence and the durasteel doors slid open to reveal a mess of droid parts and scattered white plastoid armor. Taking off down the hallway, Adorsha raced towards the engine room. Reaching out with the force, she felt the fallen's lives slipping away through her fingers like running water, a malicious presence still staining their souls from where they had been cut down.</p>
<p>Breath struggled to escape from a voice modulator and Adorsha's sights were immediately set upon the colourless trooper, rushing over to him. He grasped at her arm, and she laid her hand over his, turning him to lay on his back. The seals hissed on his helmet as Adorsha pulled it free, blood smearing over his face from where the material dragged over where it bubbled in his mouth.</p>
<p>"General… I'm… sorry…" He croaked out, and collapsed onto the floor with a thud. Adorsha sucked in a breath, feeling his life slip away. Sucking in a breath, the Jedi moved her hand over his face, closing his eyes. She snapped to attention hearing more screams and blaster fire, hearing the distinct hum of flourishing lightsabers and the distinct hiss of laser compacted heat cleaving through metal. Although she might not have been able to save this unit, Adorsha took off, unwilling to waste time and sacrificing more lives to the rampaging Sith.</p>
<p>The sound of furious saber strikes began to drown out the screams of her men as they fell silent one by one. Adorsha prayed to the living force that she wouldn't be too late, her boots squeaking in protest as she nearly slipped, rounding the corner expecting to find what had caused such mindless slaughter of her men. Instead, the frosted fear in her veins that had been starting to ice into cold concentration started to melt into white hot rage.</p>
<p>She had been expecting to encounter Ventress, perhaps with a detachment of droids, accompanied by more corpses. Instead the droids were nothing more than scrap metal now, her men slumped against the walls and floor, bar one. Fives was clawing at his throat, his legs kicking in the air as he tried to find purchase, his helmet discarded on the floor where it looked to have been knocked off where he hit the wall. Ventress' hand was held out, her hand seemingly curled around the vacant air.</p>
<p>Just as Ventress pointed the tip of her lightsaber towards Fives, still helplessly struggling to breathe, Adorsha shot her hand out towards the Sith Assassin.</p>
<p>"Get away from him!"</p>
<p>Her screech echoed through the very metals the hallway was made from as Ventress was force pushed, flung down to the other end of the hallway, hitting the wall hard. Adorsha scrambled over to where Fives had dropped to the floor, coughing as air flooded back into his lungs from where he'd been choked. Adorsha helped him from his doubled over position to stand, the duo holding onto each other's arms.</p>
<p>"Fives, are you alright?" She asked, in a tone a little softer than perhaps was appropriate between a commanding officer and their underling.</p>
<p>"I'm- I'm fine, General," Fives looked her in the eyes "I'm fine," his smile was practically infectious, and a dead giveaway to their enemy.</p>
<p>Ventress' sounded mildly amused, perhaps intrigued, as she spoke up "Well now, isn't this a surprise?"</p>
<p>The couple turned their heads to look at her, Adorsha engaging her lightsaber and bathing both of them in its aqua blue glow, catching a hint of surprise in Fives' eyes that changed to determination as he thumbed a thermal detonator on his belt.</p>
<p>"Here I thought all Jedi were repressed, miserable beings, it's what makes you all so dull to be around," Ventress' lips twisted into a sly smile "But this? Now this is interesting, a Jedi having fallen for her ARC Trooper? How delightfully dubious morally," Adorsha could hear Fives swallow behind her, while she, herself, frowned.</p>
<p>"You're clearly delusional, Ventress, the Jedi don't-"</p>
<p>Ventress huffed "Then you're just as delusional for denying it Jedi, there was passion in that force push," she smirked "His mind is like an open book to me, and all I could see in there as I was squeezing the life out of his lungs was you, Jedi, all bundled up in his arms,"</p>
<p>The Togruta's eyes flicked up to Fives again when he started to speak, though she was unable to tell if his cheeks were heated from Ventress' words or from being strangled "Adorsha... I..."</p>
<p>A cruel laugh of amusement snapped the duo both at attention "And neither of you can deny it! Oh how cute, although that won't save either of you," she inhaled deeply, and her sinister smile didn't waiver "Although you both could make this easier on yourselves and surrender, I'm sure my master would be amused for a while with a Jedi to toy with… perhaps he might persuade our scientists to be merciful as they vivisect your clone for his DNA, they might even let him live afterwards," Ventress mused.</p>
<p>Taking in a sharp breath, Adorsha blocked the dark scenes Ventress spoke of from entering her mind. Over her dead body would she allow any of her men to befall that horrid fate, Fives most of all. Right now, she still had a mission to complete, and she stepped up to Ventress' challenge.</p>
<p>"Fives," Adorsha addressed him without looking, settling into her combative stance "Go, contact Rex and regroup with the others,"</p>
<p>He laid his hand on her elbow "And leave you to deal with her alone? No, I'm not going anywhere, not without you," Fives sounded adamant, however Adorsha wasn't in the mood to argue. He removed his hand as Adorsha placed her own directly on the 'v' of his armor markings. She had promised herself that she would protect her men, and she would damn herself to chaos if she would let anything happen to Fives now.</p>
<p>The Jedi sighed "That wasn't a request, Trooper," her tone didn't leave any room to argue, nor did she give him any time to protest before she shoved him through the maintenance door. Fives called her name and she broke the lock, the door sliding down to separate the two of them. She could hear his fist pounding against the steel as Adorsha steeled herself, turning her attention back to Ventress.</p>
<p>"You just sealed his doom, without his pistols he won't be a match for the Super Battle Droids," The Assassin sized Adorsha up, walking in a slow, wide arc around her "He'll be wishing I would have ended things swiftly,"</p>
<p>"The only thing that will end swiftly will be the battle outside, your supply ship has been destroyed, your reinforcements are gone, it's over, Ventress," Adorsha narrowed her eyes "You've already lost."</p>
<p>Raising her lightsaber up in defense, the Sith Assassin slammed both her blades down on Adorsha from above, retracting one to sweep underneath. Angling her lightsaber, Adorsha intercepted the blow with the blade on the opposite side, then spinning it to twist Ventress' arms, kicking her away. Adorsha closed in on her, slashing downwards from left to right which Ventress narrowly dodged by side stepping and parrying her followup strike. Her boots squeaked on the steel as the Jedi was sent back a little, and exploiting the opening, Ventress force pushed her back into the door Fives had been shoved through. Before a killing blow could be landed as Ventress rushed forwards, Adorsha's lightsaber clashed with her two.</p>
<p>"Perhaps I should just kill you," Ventress hissed "Maybe set a trap using your body as bait, what do you think that your clone's reaction would be to your lifeless-" she leaned more of her body weight into their locked sabers, putting more pressure on Adorsha "-Cold, corpse? Do you think he would cry?" she taunted, almost purring as she finished "I've never seen a clone cry before… maybe this would do it-!" Adorsha cut her off by kneeing her in the stomach, and kicking her back, channeling the force to put some distance between them.</p>
<p>Bracing her arms, Adorsha jumped up onto her feet, running towards Ventress to take a stab at her. The assassin smacked her lightsaber away, going in with a counter attack which Adorsha parried, the two of them moving down the hallway. Sparks flew as Ventress dug her lightsaber into the floor and swept upwards, sending white hot embers showering over Adorsha which she recoiled in pain from the heat. Dull orange marks steamed with heat faded to black as they formed new, mangled shapes. A lightsaber carved through a light in the ceiling, casting shadows on the Jedi and Sith as Ventress moved back towards the doors to the engine room. Adorsha pivoted on her foot to block a strike to her legs that went through several pipes, steam bursting forth from the cracks as the metal disintegrated.</p>
<p>Two sets of feet struggled to stand tall as the ship quivered and quaked, a voice on Ventress' commlink being alarmed enough for Adorsha to hear the sound of a tactical droid saying <em>"All units, retreat and prepare for jump to hyperspace, all units-" </em>the static cut off the transmission and Adorsha sneered, pointing one of her blades at the Sith.</p>
<p>"It appears you've lost," The Jedi remarked.</p>
<p>A roar of frustration ripped from Ventress' throat as she furiously slashed at Adorsha, the two matching each other blow for blow, cutting more pipes and more steam billowed into the air. A swift kick to the gut made Adorsha slam into one of the tanks housing the coolant for the engines. Ventress took off running back where they had come from, and Adorsha had to pick herself up to make sure she didn't get away. A pale white hand stretched out, fingers splayed, as a wave of the force pushed Adorsha back, and she only caught herself by digging her lightsaber into the ground to stop her from being swept off of her feet. Ventress seized the advantage, and lifted Adorsha up by the neck, increasing the pressure around her slender neck trying to choke the life out of her.</p>
<p>A blue bolt of blaster fire suddenly hit the assassin's shoulder, breaking her concentration and injuring her, Adorsha fell to the ground, gasping for air. Ventress fled as the blaster bolts kept coming, she threw her lightsaber to break a blast door panel, making her escape and leaving Adorsha behind. This time, there was a hand to help her back up.</p>
<p>"Fives! I thought I told you to meet back up with the others?!" Adorsha exclaimed, she knew ARC Troopers could disobey orders if they thought the decision wasn't tactically sound, but Fives wasn't exactly high rank enough to outright veto her decision. Fives however, looked quite calm.</p>
<p>"I already warned them, they're preparing to shoot her down the moment she escapes," Fives informed Adorsha "General Skywalker told us as such, did you really think I was going to leave you behind?" he asked, and Adorsha again took note about how he was still holding onto her arm.</p>
<p>She took a deep breath, deactivating her lightsaber as she sensed the danger had passed, they were alone now. They had won.</p>
<p>The Jedi couldn't stop her heart from racing, or slow her breath as she looked up at the ARC Trooper. His pupils were blown wide, his own breath coming in just as quickly as her own. Both of them could feel the electricity in the air, they could recognize the spark of post-battle clarity where the mind finally caught up with the body - the realization that they were still alive. Adorsha didn't know when they had gotten closer to one another, or when she had put her hand on his chest, however she could feel his heart racing, pumping adrenaline-soaked blood through his veins that desperately searched for a release. The liquid heat running through Adorsha's body sought the same outlet, stoked by the tension between them. It was maddening, whatever this was, it had kept Adorsha up for days. Now that the battle was over, the rush of victory was only making it worse. Fives reached up to touch Adorsha's cheek. The Jedi practically melted into his touch, purring and closing her eyes. The two of them backed up to the wall, somehow wanting to get more privacy than they already had in the vacant corridor, getting impossibly closer to one another.</p>
<p>"You… You should go be with the others, they'll be celebrating," Adorsha whispered to him intimately, though there was nobody else around to hear.</p>
<p>"We're alive, I think that's something <em>we</em> should celebrate," Fives breathed "Don't you?" His hand stroked down her left lek. Adorsha's hand slid up the blue and grey markings of his armor beneath Fives' shoulder guard, her other arm coming to wrap around his neck. Her thumb and forefinger curled around the clasp holding his shoulder guard to his chestplate strap.</p>
<p>Adorsha whispered to him her answer "I do," and then Fives was pushing forwards to crush their lips together.</p>
<p>The kiss was hot, and needy. They settled against each other, Fives using his weight to support Adorsha against the wall as he grabbed the back of her thigh, hoisting it up to wrap around his waist. Both of them fed off of the energy between them, of what had been building up for days since their first night on Ren Vhar. Adorsha bit at Fives' lips, begging for more with the sweet little moans he tore from her throat, having never felt more safe or loved than she was now. How could the Jedi have forbidden something that simply felt right? Something so powerful that it made her feel invincible, that brought her such serenity at night and calmed her emotions when they ran so high? Right now Adorsha felt invincible, utterly swept up in the passion just as much, if not more so than Fives. He braced himself with his arm, the cold steel of the wall a shock to his system. She could feel the shiver run through him as she ran her hand through his hair, as the heat between them didn't falter. The embers had become a raging inferno that threatened to swallow them both, this was passion, this was intensity at its peak, and this, Adorsha realized, was dangerous.</p>
<p>Before it was too late, she acted for both their sakes, untangling herself from Fives and pushing him away.</p>
<p>Both of them stood there as she forced the distance between them, struggling to get their breath back, heat in their cheeks refusing to go down and in Adorsha's case - turning to shame. She had allowed her emotions to get the better of her, saving his life from Ventress she could justify, but this? There was no excuse.</p>
<p>"Adorsha, I-"</p>
<p>"Don't," Adorsha forced through her teeth, unable to even look at Fives "Just- don't, this… this never happened," her voice croaked, Fives took a step forward and she took one back "I'm going to the bridge," she breathed out steadily, focusing on controlling her emotions, ignoring the confusion that gripped her while she still could "I'm going to the bridge to talk to General Skywalker, and you're going to report back to Captain Rex, and tell him Ventress escaped, am I clear, ARC-27-5555?"</p>
<p>Fives was silent for a moment, his body falling back naturally to being at ease. His tongue feeling heavy, and his heart even more so as he answered "Crystal, General, this- this never happened,"</p>
<p>Sniffing, Adorsha nodded "Good," she turned on her heel so Fives couldn't see her tears as she walked away "Good…"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Shoutout to poor Commander Colt, and to everyone who I've left hurting with this chapter lol I'm sure you guys will have a lot to say in the comments so don't be afraid to tell me what you think and drop a kudos if you enjoyed :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Ner mesh'la Alor'aan</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fives Confronts Adorsha</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Sorry this took so long guys, been going through a lot IRL. Hopefully you guys like this one, and I do have another chapter coming for my other story Stuck in the Dark and another oneshot in the works so stay tuned for that!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Fives had been blown up before, he’d been thrown around by mortar shells, taken a shot or two, fallen from ledges, even been hit by a speeder bike once during a training accident. He didn’t think anything could hurt more than any of those things, yet Adorsha’s tears had created an ache in his chest that had remained since she’d called him by his number, not his name. He was sure the others could tell something was off, even Dogma had pointed out during target practice he had been a lot quieter than usual, as opposed to jovially cheering his brothers on. Instead he had remained steadfast, silent, having to concentrate more than normal. Just as he did now, laying on his back in his bunk, staring up at Jesse’s bunk. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For now he was alone, reflecting in his isolation on everything. On what had happened on the surface and in the caves of Ren Vhar, on how she had practically growled at Ventress before she could kill him. Worse still, he realized in retrospect that the pale skinned woman had been right - they both had feelings, yet neither of them could admit it. For if they did, that meant Adorsha was going against the Jedi code, and that quite possibly he was unfit for duty under her leadership. The kiss they had shared haunted him in his sleep, each time Fives shut his eyes, all he could see was her in his arms again looking up at him with such fervent admiration he thought he would melt. It wasn’t just the kiss either, there were other dreams much, much worse than that one. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His dream of seeing her in that bikini on the cover of that holomag had taken on a life of its own. Before, he had just been enjoying Adorsha’s company in the same subterranean hot springs as he had in real life. Then her wrappings had turned into that bikini, shortly thereafter it had evolved into the both of them taking a prolonged leave of absence to Zeltros. He could only wonder if her skin became a deeper shade of purple or if her white markings became even more prominent if she was exposed to the sun long enough. Fives thought back to his dream, closing his eyes again he could still picture her on top of him, their arms wrapped around each other. Her smile had been warmer than the hot sun that beat down on them, just before the ocean washed its cooling spray over them. The sudden cold would send a jolt through her, making her cling even tighter to him trying to share his warmth. Fives would always tighten his hold around her, moving her lekku over his shoulders to shield and warm them. A lavender palm would sweep the wet strands of hair off of his face, before Adorsha would press her lips to his own, sweetly kissing beneath the blue sky in their own paradise. Her hands would be splayed against his chest as she pulled back, his arms still wrapped around her as she purred out the words that she was forbidden to say. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then, just as he did now, he would open his eyes and be brought back to the cold recycled air of the ship beneath iridescent lights, covered by his cotton sheets and alone. No waves crashing on the shore, no wind through his hair, and no Adorsha. He was just another Clone in another ship, another number in a sea of them, surrounded by them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Do I make myself clear, ARC-27-5555?” </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fives cringed at that memory and looked at the wall. The way she had said it had been colder than the planet they had just been through hell and back on. Yet he hadn’t missed the choked out little sob she’d let out when she had walked away. He had wanted to go after her, but she had given him his orders. Orders he had to follow without question. It's what he had been made for, after all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"You're not a number, Fives," </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Had she been telling the truth back then? It felt more genuine than the last time they had spoken together. Fives wasn't exactly an idealist, perhaps his thinking was a little bit forward and out there when it came to his ideas, however he couldn't deny the warmth that spread through him thinking about Adorsha's words then. She had told him he was something more than a number, inferred that perhaps he had been made for a different reason, that the force had willed it so. He wanted to believe her, he really did, and he couldn't deny that she made him feel like something more too. Fives didn't feel like just another number when he was with his brothers, or the Jedi. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His brothers were worried about him, and he didn't blame them. Rex had pulled him aside last time they had been doing their laps to check in with him. Fives couldn't tell him the truth, however he knew his Captain was smart, he had asked if this was about their General and Fives hadn't even answered when he told him if he needed anything to come to him. He had overheard him later talking to Tup to keep an eye on him when he had to go to a meeting. That was how he had ended up with Tup's extra blanket sitting on the edge of his bed folded neatly. He didn’t feel particularly sleepy right now, but he wouldn’t say no to an extra blanket with how cold the barracks could get at night, even if his blood ran hotter than the average shiny. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fives sat up with a sigh. He couldn’t go on like this, and he couldn’t ignore Adorsha forever. He was sure she had been purposely avoiding him and he didn’t blame her. However there was just too much he needed to say, too much left unsaid. Just thinking about talking to her after what happened made his stomach twist and a large lump suddenly catch in his throat. What he was feeling he knew was enough for a brother to go missing on Kamino, or have your mind wiped and reassigned. Fives had to talk to her, even if it truly was selfish, he needed clarification. It would be hard to ignore the secret yearning for validation, until they spoke though, he knew this feeling of crushing melancholy wouldn’t die. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If he just asked her outright, Fives knew Adorsha would just deny his request. No, he had to play this smart. He needed a plan. In order to get her alone she would have to either be already caught up in a task or in a place where they could have some privacy. Fives thought about her quarters, it was likely the safest bet when it came to privacy, but given how high risk of somebody questioning him being there would be without revealing his true intent, it was too risky. Thinking about the layout of the ship, Fives did recall one place that would fit his needs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Getting up, he did a quick check of his equipment before heading out into the common room. It was a place where they were supposed to blow off steam while keeping out of trouble whenever they were off duty. They may have been bred to be soldiers, but just like natural born people, they needed recreation and down time when they were off-duty. It was supposed to be a place where they could gather without organization, although that had never stopped them from hosting a few late night Sabacc tournaments during the long voyages between deployments. Scanning the room, his eyes zeroed in on Jesse, chatting candidly with Hawk in the corner of the room. Fives didn’t miss the way some of his brothers looked at him as he gingerly made his way over to them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Fives,” Hawk greeted him first, and he gave a non-verbal nod of acknowledgement. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jesse tilted his head “You alright </span>
  <em>
    <span>adi’ka</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” he asked in a slightly softer tone than Fives was used to hearing “You look like you’ve seen better days,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Exhaling, Fives knew he had to keep his mouth shut about what had happened or else things would turn even more south. It's not that he didn’t want to tell his brothers, he really did, he just had to make things right first with Adorsha - or at least get answers. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m fine, Jess, I need to ask you for a favor though,” He began cautiously “You have the next rotation on shift right? When the General is doing her routes, after I slip into the room, can you ensure that the door malfunctions on the Observation Deck?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The lieutenant took a sharp breath as his brows furrowed, creasing his tattoo “This about what happened on Ren Vhar?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hawk laid his hand on Fives’ shoulder, coming closer to mutter “You’re not subtle, brother, we’ve all seen how both of you talk and look at each other,” before taking a step back and dropping his hand to his side again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now it was Fives’ turn to frown, the only time he had even seen Hawke on that mission had been when they were getting extracted out of the caves. There he had been more concentrated on making sure everyone was accounted for and got out safely. Fives wished he could tell his brothers the truth about what happened, and perhaps he would some day, right now though he had a new objective. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hence, he asked again “Brother, can I count on you? I need to talk to her, in private, alone,” Fives hoped he wouldn’t ask anymore questions, as he didn’t know if he even had a proper answer to them. Trying to navigate his own feelings right now felt more difficult than clearing out a minefield in mud. Fives didn’t exactly like the look on Jesse’s face, when he answered, but his answer was what he had wanted to hear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sure, </span>
  <em>
    <span>adi’ka, </span>
  </em>
  <span>I can get you some alone time with General Renon-Tir,” Jesse hesitated for a moment “On two conditions,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Two?” Fives questioned a little incredulously “Look I can’t take your next rotation, Rex has me scheduled for-” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jesse held up his palm to stop him “I’m not asking you to switch with me,” he told him “First condition is you promise me you’ll actually tell her how you feel rather than dancing around the subject, the second is fifteen credits for the trouble,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rolling his eyes, Fives reached back into his belt for his datapad. A few quick taps later and the transfer was done. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There, now can I count on you?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You can count on me, brother,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fives sighed in relief. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, I’d best get going,” he reasoned that if he was going to do this, he needed to be free, or at least not needed elsewhere for a while “I’ll signal you on the comms when I’m there,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jesse nodded, watching with Hawk as he left to attend to his duties for the day “Take care, </span>
  <em>
    <span>adi’ka</span>
  </em>
  <span>, take care…” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shooting practice came easier than breathing to Fives, although what made him the most hungry before lunch was personal training. The ARC Troopers had a different routine to the regular infantryman, more intensive and longer lasting, as was required for their particular skill set. Today had actually been one of their shorter sessions, as they had just been working on their arms. Pre-workout supplements were still coursing through his system afterwards, and Fives hadn’t exactly wanted his arms to look bigger than normal when he was trying to talk to Adorsha, however he supposed he would rather his arms be slightly larger than his legs being sore. The others could always tell when it was leg day, when everyone was eager to finish their duties early so they could go to bed early, or rest their legs. Fives had found oddly enough he enjoyed that day the most, and his hard work had paid off. It might have been a little vain of him to admit, but he was proud of his legs, and found it a little amusing when his brothers were all tired while he was ready to keep going on those days. He noticed Longshot and Kano walking a little stiffly before flopping down into their seats for a meeting, and a fair few of his other brothers doing the same as he made his way down the eastern passageway of the ship. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha normally made her rounds at fourteen hundred hours, and with everyone still busy attending their duties, it meant she would be alone unless needing to have Rex with her to consult. However Fives knew his Captain was busy with training today, thus they could talk alone, in private. He tapped out a message on his commlink and sent it to Jesse. It was time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Opening the door to the room, he stood there for a moment, his breath catching in his throat. Adorsha was standing right in front of the large viewport that practically filled the whole room with stars. She was tapping at something on her datapad, stopping when he cleared his throat, the door sliding shut as he stepped inside the room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Turning around on her heel, Adorsha’s face paled “Fives,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“General,” He swallowed “We need to talk,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They had avoided each other long enough, and he hoped that she would feel the same resolve that he did. After all, they couldn’t just ignore each other forever. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her voice turned cold, her eyes more rigid than the glaciers of the planet below “Fives we… it didn’t mean anything,” she bit out “What happened between us was just a spur of the moment - nothing more, we had both nearly just died,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t believe you,” Fives took a step closer to her “I don’t believe you and I don’t think you believe in those words either,” he took another step, coming into her space “You don’t have to be a Jedi to know when someone is afraid, Adorsha,” he had been less terrified staring down enemy tanks than he was now. The ARC Trooper didn’t want to scare her off, but he had to be upfront with her too. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Through gritted teeth she hissed at him in a whisper “You’re kriffing right I’m afraid, Fives! Do you not know just how dangerous what we did is? This- This stops right here, what we did is already enough for you to get reassigned or worse,” he could hear the fear in her tone too, although what threw him for a loop wasn’t just that she was afraid - she was afraid for the both of them. She still cared. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“This… This is wrong,” Adorsha closed her eyes, hanging her head in shame “This is so wrong,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How?” Fives asked, tilting her chin up to look him in the eye “How is this so wrong that you feel like you can’t even look at me? Is it because of the rules and regulations saying so?” he pressed “You think the rules and regs are right fully and wholly when they encourage you to treat us as expendable? As numbers?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re not expendable-” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know that now,” Fives admitted “Adorsha, when all Clones are born, we’re taught that we’re just numbers, that we were made to be expendable to prioritize the mission above all else,” taking a deep breath, he illuminated another truth to her “You… you don’t make me feel like a number,” they’d had that talk before. The setting in which they had it was the fuel of many a fantasy and dream he’d had about her. She didn’t make him feel like just another clone among the millions of his brothers, and Fives knew she didn’t think of him that way either. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re not a number, Fives,” The Jedi reaffirmed, she took one of his hands into her own and held it up for both of them to see. After a long moment, her gaze drifted back up to his own again “I’m sorry I called you by your number, I just… I can’t allow myself to put you in danger, certainly not because of me,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Large, warm arms encircled Adorsha in an embrace so protective it could have deflected mortar shell fire. Adorsha laid her head on the crook of his neck almost on instinct, Fives noticing the way her whole form just seemed to unwind. He was reminded of their first night together, the way she seemed to just fit perfectly cuddled up to him, alongside the sense of belonging like she was meant to be there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adorsha’s breath tickled his neck as her voice quivered “They’ll cast me out of the order if anyone finds out, but they’ll…” she sobbed softly “They’ll </span>
  <em>
    <span>kill </span>
  </em>
  <span>you,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That won’t happen,” Fives promised her “That won’t happen because I won’t let it happen,”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sniffing, she peered up at him, and blushed as he used the pad of his thumb to wipe the tears from her eyes “I’m… confused too,” she sounded like she was about to tell him a state secret with the strain backed up in her voice “The Jedi aren’t supposed to form attachments, yet it feels like the force is purposely bringing us together,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now the ARC Trooper frowned “What do you mean?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Fives, when I was making my lightsaber, my new one, I saw a lot of things, heard a lot more, the last thing I heard was… well, I heard you,” Now he understood her confusion, if the force was truly willing them to be together, that meant the Jedi’s whole doctrine was now confusing to her. Just as he had been told he was a number, she had been told she couldn’t form attachments, and just like him, now she needed to trust in her own emotions and feelings as well as the force. “I don’t… I don’t remember exactly what you said,” she elaborated “But I heard you, and if this is what the force wants…” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the dim starlight as she met his gaze, legions of stars turning the blue sea of her irises into galaxies of their own “Is this what you want, Adorsha?” Fives asked, forsake the force, he wouldn’t go any further without her wanting this too. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was silent for a moment, the only thing that could be heard in the room being the faint hum of the ship’s engines and lights as they moved. Fives’ heart palpated when she looked away, if she truly didn’t want this, it would be hard for him to accept. However he would respect her decision, and wouldn’t take this any further than she truly desired. Unhindered by outside influences such as the Jedi or the regs that he was bound to abide by too. He wasn’t a droid, he was capable of free will, of thought, of choice - and he was choosing her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead of answering, Adorsha decided to take his breath away, stealing it in a kiss. Her lips were more plush than he remembered, and she was in no rush to hurry this along. Fives couldn’t resist her, kissing back with sweet fervor that threatened to make him melt. This time there was no pushing or shoving, the heat only a slow simmer that burned comfortably between them as together they ascended into bliss.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Parting left them both panting for more.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Mesh’la,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Fives whispered </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Ner mesh’la Jetii,”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What does that mean?” Adorsha asked “You’ve said that before,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He smiled “It’s mando’a, our true tongue,” Fives confessed, referring to him and his brothers “It means- ‘My beautiful Jedi’,” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fives took a bit of pride in being able to make Adorsha blush, although now, there was only one question on his mind “So… what happens now?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know, I’m not really familiar with how these sorts of things go,” Adorsha admitted “Whatever happens, happens I suppose, but for right now…” she trailed off, before pulling him down for another long, amorous kiss. </span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. A Moment, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fives pulls Adorsha aside before a mission briefing.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>(A/N): Sorry this took so long to get out guys, I actually started writing this over a month ago but life happens, as you all know. I did wanna really quick thank my two Beta readers Dae and Berix, you guys really helped me polish this chapter up and improve it. I also wanted to thank KarajeJinsta for the lovely fanart, it really means a lot to me that you made that and I hope I can continue to inspire you and any other artists out there reading this. Lastly, thank you to everyone who is still with me or has read up to this point, I know I kind of make a big deal about this every chapter but I can't stress enough how much I appreciate you guys taking the time to comment, favorite or follow this story, or leave kudos. Hopefully I should be updating more regularly now, if not, I hope I can still bring you guys a little bit of joy through my fic. Thank you everyone, once again.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Steady foot falls had become the drum beat to which the main hangar had become accustomed to as the technicians went about their work. Pilots ran rapidly back and forth, hurrying to and from their LAATs.</p><p>New orders had come through thanks to intel transmitted from the surface of Ren Vhar, resulting in the fleet being redeployed onto the surface with a new mission. Adorsha wasn't so sure she was ready after everything that happened, the hurt still fresh on her mind and the lingering feelings of panic still haunting her from the incident in the caves. It wasn't lost on Adorsha that, were it not for Skywalker finding them, none of them would have made it out alive. She was grateful to Skywalker for that, however it had the unintended side effect of planting the seeds of doubt in her mind. Namely, that she did not belong here. Some darker part of her mind, one she was working to suppress, told her she should have been back at the Temple on Coruscant - where it was safe. She cursed herself for a coward's mindset. The people needed her here the most, not studying botany on Coruscant. After all, that was why they had sent her out here to begin with, they needed her here, not at the Temple.</p><p>She looked down at the floor, apologizing when she accidentally bumped into a technician, and took a moment to herself before walking on. Adorsha had gotten summons for the new mission briefing, and was actively dragging her feet. It wasn't that she didn't want to go, she was mentally having to fortify herself to face the others, knowing she would likely have to speak about the disaster at the Citadel.</p><p>A hand suddenly grabbed hers, yanking her aside into the shadows behind some large containers, snapping her out of those thoughts completely.</p><p>"Wha-?!"</p><p>"Shhh." A gloved finger was pressed to her lips, shushing her cry of surprise.</p><p>Adorsha batted the hand away, her eyes still wide even as she adjusted her tone. "Fives!" she hissed. "What are you doing?! Somebody could see us!"</p><p>Fives placed his hand on Adorsha's hip, backing her up against the wall. "Relax," he whispered. "Nobody comes back here when we're being deployed, it's just empty bacta tanks in these." He nodded over to the stack, setting his bucket down on top of one of the lower crates. His other hand joined its twin on Adorsha's opposite side.</p><p>The white markings of the Togrutan Jedi's face deepened into a frown. "What if somebody gets suspicious?"</p><p>He cocked his head. "I didn't know an ARC Trooper talking to his General was suspicious, should I turn myself in to General Skywalker now or over to you seeing as how I have you?" Fives smiled a little at her eye roll, he'd made his point.</p><p>She sighed. "What do you want, Fives? We're going to be late to the mission briefing."</p><p>"Am I not allowed to worry about you, cyar'ika? You shouldn't be doing this if you know you can't handle it." Adorsha said nothing, and Fives elaborated further, dropping his voice even more so only she could hear him."You look exhausted, Adorsha," he spoke with a tone of concern. She had been denying it all day long, but he was right, she was tired. She might have been able to lie to herself, but the truth was written all over her face</p><p>She sighed out her confession. "Honestly Fives, I haven't been able to sleep, not since we got back, not since-"</p><p>"The caves?" Fives guessed, and the Jedi nodded, cheeks flushing slightly in shame. "You're not the only one, Tup woke up screaming two nights ago, about woke up half the barracks with him from what Dogma and Hardcase told me."</p><p>Adorsha met Fives' gaze. "How's he been since Kix discharged him?" she asked, remembering just how chipper the younger clone seemed to be when he finally was allowed out of the medbay.</p><p>Fives merely shook his head. "He's been coping, the night terrors aren't bad enough to where he needs to go back in, I think Kix is trying to get him a weighted blanket."</p><p>Adorsha's shoulders unwound the more he spoke, the husky lilt of his voice when whispering seemed to soothe her the same way a warm, fuzzy blanket would when wrapped around her. Her own arms came up to wrap around his neck, crowding herself up to his armor that, surprisingly, was as warm as he was.</p><p>"He's in good hands," Fives finished. "I'm more worried about you,"</p><p>"You don't need to worry about me," Adorsha answered him, trying to deflect his concerns. "I can take care of myself, this will pass, I'm sure of it."</p><p>"I know you can take care of yourself," Fives pecked her lips softly, then pressed his forehead to hers. "But I'm going to worry anyway."</p><p>Adorsha purred, and closed her eyes, reaching out through the Force to feel his warm presence that chased the darkness away from her. Fives kissed her again, and Adorsha responded in kind. It wasn't the inferno of passion that had consumed them both after the Separatist attack, or the slow sweetness they'd had time to savor when they had made up with one another. The serenity both of them felt hadn't been lost, though it was more urgent, each knowing they didn't have much time. However, the little time they did have, they were determined to savor.</p><p>They parted when Anakin's voice came through Adorsha's commlink. "Renon-Tir, this is Skywalker, do you have an ETA? Admiral Yularen is waiting on you."</p><p>The couple's eyes both flicked down to the blinking button on Adorsha's wrist gauntlet. Raising it up to where the microphone would pick up her voice, she responded as Fives' hand sensually touched her lekku. "Renon-Tir here, I'm on my way now, I just got… held up."</p><p>Fives gave her a look of exasperated offence and she playfully hit his shoulder.</p><p>"I'll be there, Anakin," Adorsha promised, paused, then added, "I might need to make a detour to check on the engines, the report from engineering is taking too long."</p><p>"... Just make sure you are, Adorsha." Anakin signed off and the commlink flicked cut out.</p><p>Adorsha didn't even get the chance to say anything before Fives drew her back into a gentle kiss, moving his hand from her lekku to her cheek, cupping her face in the palm of his hand. Even after all she had been through, Adorsha had never had somebody touch her like she was made of glass, nor could she have ever guessed that Fives could be so gentle.</p><p>Crackling static coming from the ARC trooper's wrist gauntlet made the couple part again. Rex's voice hailed Fives though the speaker. "Fives, this is Rex, mission briefing is due to start shortly, where are you? I could use your input on this intel."</p><p>Fives raising his wrist just so slightly between them to answer. "Still conducting gear inspection, Sir, one of my decee's has a pretty major fault in the safety that could cause it to jam, I'm working to fix it now before we're deployed." Adorsha raised an eyebrow at his overly long excuse, then shook her head.</p><p>Rex audibly sighed through the microphone "If you can't get it fixed in the next five minutes, just head to the armory and I'll sign off on a reissue later, I need you here."</p><p>"I'll see what I can do, Captain." Fives looked a little relieved as he signed off. "Fives out."</p><p>"You're a horrible liar," Adorsha was smiling at him nonetheless, even if their time together was cutting into their duties, neither of them exactly knew when they could be like this again post deployment.</p><p>Lowering his arm again, the gloved hand returned to the Jedi's hips "I was never known for having a silver tongue," Fives shrugged. "But… I've certainly not had any complaints."</p><p>"So far," Adorsha teased him, and couldn't resist the urge to giggle at the look on Fives' face. She smooched his cheek, adding, "I'm kidding, I'm kidding." She caught a whiff of fresh cedar, with a little hint of fruit combined with a spicy undertone that had Adorsha nuzzling his smooth cheek. "Did you shave this morning?" she asked.</p><p>"Just had a clean up after training," Fives answered. "Keeps things easy to maintain that way, why?" he asked, running his hand over his facial hair.</p><p>Smiling, she continued to nuzzle and kiss him "You smell really good, and your skin is all smooth," to emphasize her point she kissed along his jaw, purring a little as Fives' hand went to her lekku.</p><p>For a long moment, neither the Jedi nor the ARC Trooper said a word. Boots fell, echoing on the tiled floor, yells from the control tower about different spacecraft all became another world away. Though the Jedi were taught to see the Temple on Coruscant as their home, Adorsha never felt that she had belonged in a place more than she did in Fives' arms. Whether that was now, standing up as they were fully armored and raring to go for their next mission or when they had been laying in bed together for warmth. Everything around them just seemed to fade away and time stood still.</p><p>Tragically, both of them knew that they couldn't postpone their duties any longer, thus they separated for one final time. Adorsha witnessed Fives tear his gaze away from her to put his helmet back on. He turned back around to talk to her, however she moved first by leaning up on her tip-toes to kiss the red triangle at the top of his brow on his bucket. "I'll go out first," she told him, before he could offer. "You wait a few moments, and then come out the other way, it'll look less suspicious."</p><p>Nodding, Fives responded, "Sounds like a plan, General. I'll see you at the briefing,"</p><p>"I'll see you at the briefing, Fives." Adorsha departed first, making sure not to look back as she walked out from behind the stack of containers lest people think her suspicious. She just hoped Fives gave it a while, even if he risked the reprimand from Rex. If they were discovered, then things would only get more complicated from there. Not to mention dangerous.</p><p>Risking a sneaky glance over her shoulder when she was crossing the main strip of the hangar, Adorsha couldn't see him in the shadows of the containers, and looked ahead once more. The briefings were normally held either on the bridge or in one of the conference rooms depending on the situation or the circumstances at hand. Going into the turbolift to head to the upper floors of the Venator, a hand caught the elevator doors just as they closed, reopening them again.</p><p>"Sorry- I'm late for a-ah! General!" The clone who had stopped the lift exclaimed upon seeing Adorsha. She eyed him curiously.</p><p>"I'm sorry Trooper but… I don't recognize your armor," She admitted, examining the intersecting and parallel blue lines of his armor that looked hastily slapped on, the lines on his arms looked a little sloppy, but there were little tally marks on his shoulder that totaled up to five.</p><p>He scrambled to take his helmet off, revealing the heterochromia in his eyes, immediately identifying him to Adorsha. "Sarid! My apologies, I didn't recognize you in your new armor," she beamed.</p><p>"It's okay, General, I hardly recognize myself, f-feels weird being called Corporal," the anxious flone admitted. "I-I didn't mean to be so late, I got distracted by the painting, you don't think I went overboard did you? I'm not sure why Captain Rex requested my presence at the meeting, I-I'm not like, high ranked, or an ARC, or—you know, anything special."</p><p>Even Adorsha had to think for a moment as to why Sarid would have been invited to sit in on the meeting. "It might be because you know the layout of the collapsed Citadel better than our Pathfinders right now, after all, you successfully traversed the caves and debris all the way up to the surface," she looked up at the ceiling, the silver durasteel of the turbolift reminding her of the ice crystals that had grown in the caves above them. Her reflection still held the same memories as those icicles. For a moment, she hesitated, her mind drifting back to that dark place of shadows that threatened to consume her. The Jedi could feel Sarid's gaze on her, which brought her back to reality once she realized she had been silent for a while.</p><p>"G-General?"</p><p>Adorsha smiled. "They wouldn't have awarded you with the rank of Corporal if you didn't deserve it. Sarid, you saved me and all of your brothers that day, you should be proud of yourself." She watched his face grow a little warm from her own proud tone. Sarid might have been a scared shiny on the surface, but she knew he would make a fine addition to the 501st.</p><p>The turbolift finally stopped and the two walked out together, heading into the meeting room where Rex, Anakin, Admiral Yularen, Jesse and a few others sat huddled around a table. Sarid went to join his brothers while Anakin came up to Adorsha.</p><p>"What took you so long? Everything alright with the engines?" her fellow Jedi Knight asked, folding his arms.</p><p>"I got distracted on my way here, nothing to worry about though, everything's fine with the engines," She wasn't going to spin him a tale. Instead she looked over to where Rex was shifting on his feet "What's with Captain Rex?" she asked, pretending as if she didn't know.</p><p>Anakin sighed and shook his head. "We're missing Fives, he's normally late to these meetings anyway but he was in the caves too and—speak of the devil," he frowned as Fives came through the door.</p><p>Rex pushed past Anakin to talk to the ARC Trooper. "I hope there's a good explanation as to why you're fashionably late this time, Trooper."</p><p>Fives merely shrugged, looking at Adorsha as he said, "Sorry, Sir, like I said: I got a little preoccupied."</p><p>Groaning, Rex rolled his eyes. "I get ARC Troopers like to inspect and correct their own equipment and all, but next time just drop it off to somebody who can fix it for you, otherwise I'll have no choice but to reprimand you, is that understood?"</p><p>"Yes sir, now that I'm guessing we're all here though—shall we…?" Fives asked, gesturing toward the table for the mission briefing to begin.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>(A/N): Please let me know what you thought of this chapter in the comments, I'm dying to see after so long your guys' reactions!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. What's the mission, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fives and Adorsha are called in to the mission briefing for redeployment to Ren Vhar...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey guys! This is my holiday gift to you all! I hope you enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The cool blue tones and white dots of the holomap shone like fading stars in a lone galaxy as the projection reflected off of the shiny white plastoid armor. Various members of the 501st and Republic Officers had taken a seat around the table. The two Jedi in the room were seated at opposite ends, while Admiral Wulf Yularen remained the only one standing to work the controls of the map.</p><p>"Our scouts have successfully reported back with the pathfinders on the structural integrity of the cave systems beneath the surface. We were correct in our assumptions that the earthquake was not a geological event triggered early by the Separatists." Yularen explained, zooming in and highlighting where the ground had collapsed.</p><p>Fives swallowed as the images changed from the solid ground to the gaping maw that had opened up in the ice. His body still remembered the pain of the rocks and ice falling on top of him until one had finally forced him into the dark recesses of his unconscious mind. Then, after dreaming of the last horror he had witnessed, he had awoken into an entirely new one. Thankfully, Rex had been there with him. Although they both could have been in better circumstances, both of them waking up stuck together had tipped the odds in their favor to get free. That had been the edge against the spiders devouring them all in the cave that day, even if some of his brothers hadn't been so fortunate. After watching them being devoured, melted, and ripped apart by the eight-legged fanged fiends, Fives wasn't sure if he would even wish such a fate on the Clankers that caused the quake to begin with.</p><p>Out of the corner of his eye, the ARC Trooper saw his General quirk an eyebrow. "Admiral." Skywalker addressed, "If you're suggesting what I think you are, that means that they had been tracking us from the beginning."</p><p>"Which they have," Yularen confirmed, "From this base."</p><p>Murmurs from around the room carried words of discontent and anger. Ever since they had arrived on the ice ball, the Separatists had been watching their every movement, waiting like scorpions in the sand to strike. As Fives had continually observed, the Separatists' own resources fed into an overconfidence that often led to hasty deployments of droids. This in turn led to their command overly leaning on their tactical droids, to where these days all the Republic really had to do was strike swiftly and destroy said droid to secure their objective. If they truly had been tracked from the beginning, then they had played right into their unknown enemy's hands. They had been distracted during their primary invasion, and the CIS command had sprung their trap, plunging them all into the sub-zero sublevels of the tunnels and city. Thus, destroying the settlement in the process.</p><p>"Their goal never was to take the city," Rex shook his head "Their goal was to protect that base, even if that meant using the Citadel as a weapon itself." Fives could hear the melancholy retrospect creeping into his Captain's voice. A quick glance around the room and Fives could tell none of the members of Torrent Company were taking the news well. How could they? A</p><p>simple mission to defend and protect had turned into a waking nightmare of trying to survive against the worst Ren Vhar had to throw at them.</p><p>"They nearly succeeded. Our body count and MIA list keep rising." Adorsha's worried tone betrayed the air of authority. Fives knew she was trying hard to maintain her composure after taking countless losses. He had fought alongside General Skywalker and Commander Tano to know that Jedi senses were like technology, so far above his security clearance, that it might as well have been from the future. Whatever their recovery teams had been able to find, Adorsha's senses along with Skywalker's must have been feeling far more in terms of loss.</p><p>"Any idea who the base commander is?" Skywalker asked Yularen. His brows set into a deep frown, "This doesn't seem like a strategy fitting of any of the Separatist Leadership we've met so far, this is reckless... and messy."</p><p>The expression in Yularen's eyes was one of disappointment. Fives could only wonder if there was perhaps a hole in their intelligence, as he could already predict by looking at the man what he was about to say. Yularen shook his head, "As of right now, we do not have any information</p><p>that could pertain to that other than the standard Tactical Droid the Separatists tend to rely upon in the battlefield.</p><p>"Or used to safeguard their projects." Adorsha conceded, "Still, somebody has to be spearheading the operation, I've never seen that kind of technology being used before. If this is a testing ground for underground to surface infantry, or worse- artillery, I'm guessing there is probably a scientist or an engineer involved." the white markings that outlined where her eyebrows would have been furrowed in thought, "Whoever is in charge, they must be getting it in the ear from CIS high command for dropping a city on top of us.</p><p>The Separatists aren't above using civilians as shields for holding a planet or safeguarding a project." General Skywalker cut in. The firmness in his voice in stark contrast to the pillowy lilt of Adorsha's,"They almost succeeded using those tactics at Ryloth."</p><p>Fives found himself leaning forward as the oceanic, teal hued hologram illuminated Adorsha's eyes. It wasn't the first time he had been lost in them, nor did he doubt it would be the last. Thankfully, his brain was able to catch up with his tongue to agree with her, quelling Skywalker's anger with a distraction on their current mission at hand, "They've probably got some more of those drill-tanks stashed somewhere on that base, if not more are probably already being developed in a foundry or factory attached to the base. They can hide them in sand, it's not a stretch for them to hide one beneath the snow and ice."</p><p>"If not, I'm betting they've got something even bigger stashed away," Adorsha added, looking Fives directly in the eye, then to Captain Rex. "Our best course of action would be to use those tunnels cleared out by the Pathfinders through the ice to infiltrate the base, capture the tactical droid before they can wipe or blow the central computer, secure or destroy whatever they already had developed and stop the Base Commander from fleeing." In a way, Fives was glad</p><p>he had fallen for her. The war made the Galaxy a complicated enough place as it is, the safest places now were aboard the warships that they now were all convened on, more so than the cities that had stood for generations like the Citadel had on Ren Vhar. Yes, the galaxy was a series of ironies that Fives had been born to defend, alongside his brothers. Increasingly though he had found his loyalties starting to shift with the feelings he knew he was certain of. If anything, he pitied the residents of the icy tundra he was sworn to protect below them that needed to be avenged, but who was to say they wouldn't turn around and point fingers at the Republic for being too slow in their response?</p><p>There were only two things in the Galaxy he was certain of; The duty that every Clone was born with, to protect the Republic and whatever sentimentality the Kaminoans tried to breed out of them remained. He loved his brothers, but as Adorsha continued to talk, point and discuss matters of strategy with Admiral Yularen and General Skywalker, Fives wondered if it was possible he loved her just as much as his brothers, if not more so, in a different way. He didn't have a word in basic to describe it, though he recalled something Echo had taught him years ago on Kamino when they had been going through ARC training.</p><p>
  <em>"Kair'ta, have you ever felt like that, Fives?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Uh… how would I know if I did?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Alpha said it was like being so attached to someone you get this intense pain in your chest each time you see them."</em>
</p><p>He never knew what Echo had meant until he'd met Adorsha. Back then, he wouldn't have believed that he'd ever be so lucky, let alone be locking lips in dark corners of the hangar bay. Dreamed it perhaps, as he was sure all Clones did about their blazing hot female Generals. He remembered the way Commander Cody had been watching Senator Izayoi on Talus- it was hard not to, and he was certain they'd had some kind of affair. He'd seen Commander Bly and General Secura interact too, the tension was so thick between them Fives was sure only pure Beskar could cut it. No, he wasn't the first Clone to fall for their Jedi, and he highly doubted he would be the last. In this time of war, he could only wonder if this was the feeling Echo described and not the result of the impending doom on Ren Vhar they had faced. It seemed like the more time he spent away from her, his thoughts of her would continue to grow, then when he saw her, if he said nothing, he would get a weird sensation in his chest. It wasn't exactly painful, in fact, Fives would say it felt more like excitement than anything. Still, he had to wonder, would he have helped another person if they had come into the barracks that night looking for a bed, if it hadn't been Adorsha? He liked to think so, the Jedi had to be in peak condition before entering the battlefield, and Fives had made the call to share his bed. Not just because of sentimental attachment- but because it had just been the right thing to do.</p><p>Rex's voice brought Fives out of his trance "We'll split into two strike teams once we've secured the entrance to the base." He pointed at the massive opening in the ground on the map, "From there, one team can make their way towards the computer mainframe of the base and extract</p><p>whatever information they can. Meanwhile the other team will move to intercept the Base Command before they can evacuate</p><p>Surface reinforcements can cut off whatever route they have planned and move to capture, or kill, should the need arise."</p><p>General Skywalker's scowl never faded. "I want that Tactical droid alive," he looked to Rex, "But I'm not opposed to having it sent to technical to extract its information from its circuit boards. If things get hot, then so be it."</p><p>The two Jedi exchanged a look, wordlessly exchanging information until Adorsha slowly nodded in approval. Fives suddenly found himself, alongside Rex, in his General's eye "Rex, get your men ready to move out and divide up the Strike teams as you see fit, Adorsha and I will join all of you in the hangar after we've relayed some information back to the High Council and the Fleet."</p><p>Rex stood up, taking his helmet under his arm and Fives copied his Captain "We'll round up the men and brief them in the hangar, time is of the essence here, the longer we stay the more time our enemy can prepare to evacuate."</p><p>"Then let's not give them that advantage," Adorsha rose to her feet, nodding at Rex, "Go."</p><p>That was all the permission both Clones needed to leave. Fives hadn't been expecting to redeploy so soon after their last mission went so awry, but if the Republic needed them to remain on Ren Vhar- then so be it.</p><p>Fives just hoped the base commanders would give him an excuse to melt them for what they'd done to his brothers and the Citadel.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Well, as promised, a present for all my AO3 readers - I've now written my first smutty fic in nearly10 years set in this same universe! It's called "Hello Soldier" and can be viewed by clicking on my profile. I hope you all will check it out, maybe drop a kudos or two over there or even leave a comment, same on this fic too? Either way, I'll see you guys on Ren Vhar in the new year!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Kiss Me Goodbye, General?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fives has a little surprise for his General before they redeploy to the surface...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>First chapter of 2021, enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>No matter how many of her Jedi brethren would disagree with her, the heart of a Republic Warship was always the hangar. Adorsha watched from the observation deck as equipment was being loaded onto the LAAT/i Gunships alongside the Torrent Fighters that would be escorting them on the ride down. The crew of the ship were practically the bone cells, making sure they had the foundations upon which to operate, which was where the troops themselves came in, providing the metaphorical and literal blood of the ship. The ship itself was a lot smaller than what she had journeyed upon during the early days of the war, and Adorsha was somewhat thankful for it. Back when the Engineers on Kuat and Sullust had been more experimental, her and her Master had been fortunate enough to be stationed with the 209th Armored Attack Battalion onboard a prototype warship that had practically been a moving fortress.</p><p>Adorsha still remembered the sour taste in her mouth when her Master had named it.</p><p>"<em>Indomitable? Are you sure that's a wise name, Master?" </em>It had been a genuine question, and Krell had snapped at her like she was being insubordinate.</p><p>"<em>A ship like this needs a name that shall do it justice, hence forth, it will be known as the Indomitable, for it cannot be conquered or destroyed, not under my command," </em>She remembered how he had folded his arms behind his back, then turned to her, peering down at her with beady eyes <em>"Unless you have an objection, to my judgement, Padawan?"</em></p><p>"<em>No sir." </em>Adorsha had lied, again, to his face. By that time, it was something she had to do almost constantly just so there wouldn't be any conflicts. The name <em>Indomitable </em>had been nothing except a testament to her Master's ever increasing, ever worrying, arrogance.</p><p>The ship had been destroyed during the first battle of Kamino.</p><p>So many lives had gone up in flames, then even more had been consumed by the sea. The 209th had to be rebuilt with new Clones fresh from Kamino, and integration hadn't been easy. It had been hard for her to learn the ticks and quirks of the fresh faces in an army of Clones, yet she couldn't imagine how hard it must have been for them too.</p><p>"The company should be ready to move out shortly, General, we're just waiting on the refueling of the transport ships and moving some of the heavier equipment on," Fives' voice sounded from behind Adorsha as he reported in, helmet on his belt "You ready to get back down there and flush those clankers out?"</p><p>She turned around, the sole of her boot making a distinct grinding noise against the tile of the floor, swishing with her coattails. Fives, like all ARC Troopers, had very thick barriers around their minds. Their independence made their will strong, thus Adorsha wasn't able to read his thoughts even as she took a step closer to him. However, that did not mean she couldn't sense when he was projecting, or sense his mood. This time, it was her who closed the gap between them, reaching up to kiss his lips tenderly. He exhaled, the tension in his form easing away as Adorsha wound her arms around him. She could tell that beneath the excited, boiling surface of his blood that itched for a fight, there was a nervousness that sat at the bottom of his soul. Thick, unmoving like the sludge of a swamp, Adorsha could only recognize it as she felt it within hers too. Neither of them would exactly be able to shovel it away, but it could provide a good foundation for them to stand on and fight once they did get down to Ren Vhar again.</p><p>Just as she had started the kiss, Adorsha was the one who ended it, and Fives took her head in his hands. The gaze inside of his citrine eyes said what the soldier himself couldn't. They had both very nearly died in those caves, were it not for timely intervention, they would have perished together. That horror, that fear, the muffled screams of his brothers as they were eaten alive still haunted him. Adorsha hugged him tightly, and Fives hugged her back with some reluctance.</p><p>"We'll go down there, together, again," Adorsha promised Fives in a firm, determined tone "And we won't just flush them out," she scowled "We'll make them regret the day they stepped foot onto this planet."</p><p>The Jedi was momentarily stunned out of her mood when Fives pecked the top of her head "Have I told you how much I love you lately?"</p><p>She chuckled lightly "I had some idea."</p><p>His honeyed gaze returned Adorsha's own as Fives opened his eyes "I hoped to catch you alone before we went down, actually," he confessed, and stepped back a little "I have something for you, I think you'll get more use out of it that I could," reaching back into his belt, Fives pulled out one of his DC-17's, and held it out for Adorsha to take.</p><p>"You're… giving me your pistol?" Adorsha took the gun from him, and examined it. Rotating it in her hand she held it up close to see if he had made any modifications. It didn't appear like he had done anything to it, hence her confused expression when she finally looked at Fives again.</p><p>"That was my first issued decee when I went into training, we were told it was our responsibility to take care of our weaponry, and nothing was more important than it," Fives began to explain "Then... I found somebody more important," he smiled when Adorsha blushed, her montrals turning a deeper shade of blue in response "I know there's a good chance we could get separated down there," or worse, that one of them wouldn't return "So, I thought if I gave this to you, perhaps you could put some of it on your lightsaber? That way we'd be fighting together- wherever we end up on this mission."</p><p>Adorsha was back on him in an instant, her kiss more frantic than before, which Fives returned eagerly. She wasn't exactly sure how the parts, or even which ones, would fit onto her weapon. However, she was sure that she would find a way to incorporate it into the overall design. Even if that meant it was just adding to the aesthetics and nothing else. She broke the kiss and tucked her face under his chin, her montral laying flat against his cheek.</p><p>"I'll see what I can do before we leave," She wasn't exactly sure what she would be able to put on the saber in time before they left, but the Jedi was certain she could make it work. Fives pulled back a little bit to brush her cheek with his thumb.</p><p>"Make sure you get into your snow gear, can't have you freezing up on me now," Fives advised her gently, although from her smirk, he knew he had no room to talk.</p><p>"As long as you'll warm me up again after we get back," Her voice was smoother than hard candy and just as sweet "You should go get changed too, I'll see you on the flight deck before we leave," Adorsha promised, which wasn't a lie, she just couldn't bring herself to say goodbye just yet.</p><p>Fives pecked her lips softly "Go, before I get tempted to break the door."</p><p>The walk back to her quarters was mercifully short thanks to the redeployment, everyone was too busy hustling and bustling in the hangar and cargo areas to make any traffic getting back. The all weather gear she had chosen to wear on Ren Vhar was still being laundered, and she would admit wearing that had been a mistake. She knew it would have been cold, but being that the previous operation had been one of urban warfare she had wrongly assumed after their march they would be indoors. If not that, then fighting in the streets, not underneath the ice.</p><p>Her quarters were just as cold and desolate as the planet's surface had been. She had never felt comfortable in space on her own, not since the Red Harvest incident. Often Adorsha wondered why the council had picked her to be Master Krell's apprentice when she would have been happy amongst the agricultural corps. Whenever she had the opportunity to visit a temple of the Jedi, she would always make a beeline for the gardens. Among nature she felt at home. She could feel every living organism and its place symphonically resonating in a choral peace which soothed her soul. That peace, that beautiful melody, had turned into a bloody roar of chaotic carnage during that incident. Apparently it had made her worthy of being apprenticed to the Weapon Master. Furthermore, her time hunting down and dealing with the ramifications of said incident taught her what she needed to pass her knighthood trials. However with those ramifications, came the crippling chill of loneliness in space, the feeling of paranoia that something was in the shadows watching… even if her senses told her nothing was present.</p><p>Adorsha found herself standing before the small wardrobe she had been permitted by the Jedi and the Republic. The door slid open with a wave of her hand, the mirror greeting her with her image, and an odd thought.</p><p>
  <em>I miss the green, the flora, the trees… yet I've feelings for a man birthed in a cloning vat.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>A man who wouldn't exist without war.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>A man who I shouldn't have any attachment to… yet I heard his voice calling me.</em>
</p><p>The Jedi looked down at the gun in her hand, and then took out her main double bladed saber. Sighing, she put them down on the nightstand before she went to change outfits. Pulling her shirt over her head and her pants down, she paused seeing the scars on her hip. The furious lines ripped through her white markings, white bleeding into silver where they had been bisected. Adorsha's fingers seemingly moved of their own accord, running over the physical, painful memories of a battle long past, a true trial of her dedication to the light side of the force. Even now, years later, she could still feel the pain of bloodied nails ripping at her tender flesh trying to grab her.</p><p>Hissing through her teeth, she buried the memory as she plunged her hand into her closet, drawing out the blue winter garb granted to her by the Jedi. There was nothing special about it, it was mostly blue, warm, and had a white fur trim that matched the lining of the hood within the long overcoat she wore. That was the only thing she didn't like about it was also, the coat. When it went over her montrals, she looked like a blue loth cat or a snow bunny. The goggles she had around her neck didn't alleviate the problem either, though the white belt she snatched from the armory broke up the solid blue a little bit.</p><p>"Well, at least I'll be warm."</p><p>Adorsha slid her wardrobe shut, the mirror catching a glimpse of the lightsaber and the gun on her night stand.</p><p>"<em>I thought if I gave this to you… we'd be fighting together."</em></p><p>The Jedi sighed "Oh Fives…"</p><p>Looking at her chrono, she knew she didn't have much time, but oddly enough - she felt as though she needed none. She already knew how she wanted it to look, and what parts of the weapon she wanted to go where.</p><p>Placing the blaster to her left and her lightsaber to her right, Adorsha knelt on the floor, her boots squeaking at being creased. Her hands came to rest on her knees, the fabric of her pants soft beneath her fingertips and the floor cool under shins.</p><p>The Jedi breathed in.</p><p>
  <em>Flowing through all, is balance.</em>
</p><p>She could feel it all, the footsteps of the Legion getting ready to move out, the naval garrison running through the halls in preparation of the assault.</p><p>
  <em>There is no peace without a passion to create.</em>
</p><p>These were the words her Master had taught her. It wasn't complete heresy upon the code, it was a stipulation. Creativity was good, it fueled ideas, relationships, but only true passion could give way to obsession. Channeling it into something productive was the most helpful and mindful thing a Jedi could do.</p><p>
  <em>There is no passion without peace to guide.</em>
</p><p>Fives' words echoed on the fringes of her mind. This weapon, this tool of justice, was a product born of love. Guided by the serenity they felt in each other's arms, a feeling that embraced her in the force.</p><p>
  <em>Knowledge stagnates without the strength to act.</em>
</p><p>They had to stop the Separatists before they could escape, before they could level another city, or worse, collapse the entire planet's fragile ecosystem.</p><p>The barrel of the gun and the cylinder of her lightsaber hilt scraped together.</p><p>
  <em>Power blinds without the serenity to see.</em>
</p><p>This was the core tenet of every Weapon Master's creed. One Adorsha knew she would take care to remember when using this new weapon.</p><p>
  <em>There is freedom in life.</em>
</p><p>Even if their lives were ones they had only ever known a certain path, they still had the freedom to choose, to walk away. To love, to hate, and protect.</p><p>
  <em>There is purpose in death.</em>
</p><p>Nature had a cycle, one that had to continue for the sake of their future. It could not be stopped, yet there was always that reassurance it would go on no matter what. Adorsha took comfort in that fact.</p><p>
  <em>The force is all living things.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Ner mesh'la Jetii."</em></p><p>
  <em>I am the Force.</em>
</p><p>Adorsha's lightsaber came to her outstretched hand, the arctic blue blades igniting with a swipe of her finger.</p><p>The light reflected in the silver and black handle, the inner barrel of the blaster having been completely stripped down and mounted securely on the outside of the body to create a grip. Matching on either end were two elongated black emitters, six prongs stretching up to guard the base of the blades.</p><p>This was the weapon of a Jedi. Not just any Jedi - a Jedi Weapon Master.</p><p>
  <em>Master Krell would be proud.</em>
</p><p>Adorsha smiled and disengaged the weapon, and went to grab it's much simpler, thin, cousin. Placing both blades on her belt, she walked out, ready to face whatever Ren Vhar had to throw at her.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Be sure to let me know in the comments what you think of the story so far!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. I'm With You, General!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Republic finally makes their move on Ren Vhar.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter was stuck in writer's block hell for over a month, but after pushing through I truly believe this to be one of the best chapters of the story so far, and it has one of my favorite quotes in it too. Updates will still probably be spotty for a while as I am moving currently, but in the long run I should be getting back to writing. A lot has happened in a short span of time, but I felt I owed it to you guys after such a long absence to get this out. I hope you are all doing well, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The first time Fives ever boarded an LA-AT/i, his commanding officer presiding over his squad's training had warned him about the sickness, yet said nothing of the noise. It seemed like a lifetime ago now, back when his armor was nowhere near advanced as what he wore now, when he was still in training and the rest of his squad was alive. The sound of the transport craft never changed, however it seemed quieter now than it used to be. Perhaps it was his hearing, or maybe he had just gotten used to everyone raising their voices to shout over the engines. Nevertheless he switched his helmet's communication control to the internal network only so he could hear Rex's voice through his commlink.</p>
<p>"We'll be landing here to establish a fallback point, scanners have indicated this is the most stable area should another ground collapse occur," Rex pointed to the holomap projected from his wrist which lit up the interior of the craft "Whatever you need to do with your weapons- do it now, we'll be coming in hot."</p>
<p>A resounding "Yes sir!" rang out through the LA-AT/i, followed by the hum of Z6 cannons firing up and switches clicking on rifles from the stun setting to lethal. Jesse handed Fives charges from a box they'd brought on board, handing them out to the lower ranked officers and specialized clones. Fives slipped them into the pouch of his chest harness, and checked his DC-17's. He toggled them to the rapid fire setting, and checked the ventilation before clicking the handles twice and spinning them into their respective holsters.</p>
<p>The transport craft began to shake and spasm as it entered the atmosphere of the planet. The metal creaked under the pressure as they descended. Soon the telltale pounding of anti-air shells sent little quakes throughout the cabin. It was this part that always had Fives holding his breath or had his heart skipping beats. The few times he had been shot down, Kix had always been with him or General Skywalker, but neither of them were present. Instead he reached up and held onto a handle dangling above him, squeezing it with his fist to ground himself. As soon as they landed, they needed to take out whatever artillery the clankers had managed to drag up to the surface. Otherwise the base storming would be over before it even began. He checked the communications on his helmet again, wiping the frost away that had begun to seep through the doors.</p>
<p>Rapidly dropping temperatures turned all their breath frosty, even huddled together as they all were now. Nobody dared speak a word, and Fives hated it, he felt trapped in his own armor. It was as if they had all taken some sort of sacred vow of silence ahead of time. He wasn't blind, he knew why everyone was so quiet instead of their rowdy selves. The memories of the tunnels, ice and fangs was too fresh, too soon, for them to be sent back again. Granted, it wasn't completely void of noise. The hum of the engines rumbled through the whole cabin, the pounding noises outside signaled the arrival of anti-air missiles, and an explosion had them all momentarily tilted sideways.</p>
<p>Fives knew when they had begun their final descent as the temperature began to frost his skin through his blacks, even underneath his armor. The rattling stopped. And then-</p>
<p>"Go! Go! Go!"</p>
<p>Doors slid open, the wind hit Fives before the sounds of blasters did. The song of droids loudly affirming their commands clashed with war cries as he sprinted for cover behind the frozen rocks and barriers resurrected by the droids. Hardcase took point as he always did, the Z-6 blaster becoming the heavy drum beat of their charge. Something caught the light of Tup's visor, and Fives tackled his younger brother out of the way of the mortar fire. The impact threw snow everywhere, through the smoke, Fives could see the faint blue glow of a single lightsaber that swung out towards the line, then returned to its unseen owner that Fives could only guess to be Anakin Skywalker. The fighting was almost instinctual to Fives, following the cycle that had been drilled into him during his special forces training. The pulling motion of his finger to squeeze the triggers of his DC-17's nigh near automatic.</p>
<p>Another explosion shook the ground, the blast raining down snow and broken ice shards on them all. Fives could see the little tears on the arms of his winter armor as he raised his elbow to shoot again, not even thinking about the possibility of the ice shards shredding it when the droids had rolled out their tanks. He took over behind a barricade, Rex sliding behind the cover beside him with Appo crawling through the snow to join them.</p>
<p>"Those tanks have tough armor!" Appo shouted over the chaos "We need air support!"</p>
<p>"No! We do that the whole ice sheet could collapse from the impact!" Fives urgently appealed to Rex as the Captain looked between the two of them.</p>
<p>Raising his wrist, Rex tapped on a button to open the comms channel "General, we need-"</p>
<p>A huge boom had all three clones scrambling to press themselves tightly up against the barrier to shield themselves from another blast. Shrapnel soared through the air, one of the flaming meteors of metal landing only a few feet away from them all. When Fives lowered his hand from his visor, he was greeted to the sight of a warped armored panel and pieces of a continuous track.</p>
<p>Rex was the first to be brave enough to peer over the top of the barricade, Fives followed his Captain's lead reluctantly.</p>
<p>Skywalker and Adorsha were the twin spearheads that were lancing the droid tanks as they continued to roll out from the doors to the base. From the smoking wreck the male Jedi was standing on, he leaped to the next, stabbing his lightsaber into the top of the vehicle and dragging it down to dissect it in half. The Togruta meanwhile stood exposed just in front of the tanks. Her lightsaber was on her belt, and her hands out, palms up with her fingers spread. The wind where she stood seemed more vicious, the icicles on the tanks growing and the snow pounding the vehicles into spinning their treads around in futility to try and move. As soon as the next tank stopped moving, General Skywalker would swoop down for the kill.</p>
<p>Fives wasn't about to waste that opening.</p>
<p>"Push forward!" He bellowed, the bravery in his voice carrying in the wind and touching every soldier who suddenly dove out of cover to go on the offense. Rex stood at his side, pistols whipping back and forth between the groups of advancing B1's trudging into the snow. They didn't care that their skinny little legs were getting caught, their programming just told them to keep going, keep pushing- and the Clones rose to meet their challenge.</p>
<p>It was an onslaught of man and machine. Snow and smoke mixed to the point where Fives had to rely upon the HUD in his visor to identify which was which.</p>
<p>The whooshing noise of a high velocity shell had them all scrambling for cover again. It's impact shattered the rocky ice wall to the east, sending large shards raining down upon them all as the wall collapsed covered the entrance to the side of the base, where the B1's had been steadily streaming out of since the battle had begun.</p>
<p>Time became irrelevant, it always did to Fives in the vanguard. His body forgot all meaning and concept of it, his heart pushing him to do more while his brain mushed him on. Advancing he felt his foot slip and nearly giveaway from beneath him, his boot unable to get a grip. When he looked down for a split second, his stomach coiled and folded over at the sight. A brother, dead, his last line of defense- his armor, had failed him, his breastplate crushed inward crudely from where he'd been hit. His blood had bleached the snow around him, there were no markings indicating what legion he belonged to, only the red that had once been his life now marked his death. Fives didn't recognize him, how could he? He was just another casualty, another face that looked like his own that had served their purpose - to die, for the Republic.</p>
<p>How many boys had he seen fresh out of basic come to die in their first real battle? Fives himself was no stranger to the feeling of existential dread that filled him now. He was all that remained of his original squad now.</p>
<p>Time to watch the Dominoes fall.</p>
<p>Those words had haunted his short life.</p>
<p>He heard the clinking and chinking of copper and steel, of a blaster being cocked "Die Republic scum!"</p>
<p>Fives aimed, and held down the trigger. The blaster bolt soared into the chest of the B2, followed by another. Then another. Again, and again.</p>
<p>I will not fall!</p>
<p>He didn't stop- he would never stop. He never let up until his DC's clicked, hissing for mercy. All that remained of the super battle droid now was a bundle of smoking circuits inside of a silver gilded chassis.</p>
<p>"Fives, <em>Fives!</em>"</p>
<p>He turned around, expecting to see Heavy or Echo, maybe even one of his trainers ready to scold him...</p>
<p>Instead, he came helm to helm with Rex. Covered in snow, the wind blowing through his winter gear, the white now stained with wet patches and black scorch marks. Everything suddenly spun back into focus. He wasn't a shiny, he was an ARC Trooper. He was standing, while the shiny remained face up in the snow besides him.</p>
<p>"Are you alright?" Rex asked, getting back to back with him to give them both cover.</p>
<p>"I'm still standing, aren't I?"</p>
<p>Each ice cold breath he sucked in singed his dry nostrils, the war cries that he used to rally his brothers had become silent in Fives' stinging throat, instead he stood by and followed Rex's lead. They pushed up towards their Jedi, their efforts being rewarded as the Republic forces seized control of the base entrance, forcing the droids to retreat.</p>
<p>As the sandy coloured battle droids that couldn't make it inside were swallowed and stomped by a sea of white plastoid that poured through into the hangar bay. The infantrymen secured the doors, and LA-AT/i's swooped down to deliver them more supplies as they secured the area. However, Fives could feel the nanoseconds slip by - they didn't have much time to waste before the base commander would be fleeing.</p>
<p>General Skywalker and Adorsha rounded up some of the men into a larger group, Fives recognized a few armor patterns of those who had been in the briefing with him. The sight of his Jedi had his racing heart skip to a pleasant pep, oxygen slowly returning to his system as his thoughts began to slow too. She was alright, he was alright - they were both still standing upright in one piece. Things were fine.</p>
<p>"Fives, Jesse, Hardcase, with me!" Skywalker told them. Fives didn't have any time to even say goodbye to the woman who tamed his heart and head at a mere glance, only able to nod in courteous partition as they ran in separate directions once more.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Any comments are appreciated, I love hearing from you guys what you think &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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